Emily's Piano Gingras, Charlotte; Jorisch, Stephane and Ouriou, Susan

From School Library Journal Grade 4-6 Emily's beloved piano has been sold, her mother has sunk into depression, her married older sisters whisper when they come to visit, and her father has finally left to live with another woman. Emily says, Our family is leaking, cracking, and shaking all over…. So, remembering the piano as happiness in a box, she decides to track it down by visiting the rich neighborhood and asking door to door. When that proves fruitless, a piano tuner helps her locate the instrument and she meets an old nun who gives lessons. Emily brings her mother to it, and playing it cheers her up and provides a teaching job. While the child helps to alleviate an otherwise bleak situation, young readers may be brought low by the loveless household and her sisters' and her father's mean behavior. Older readers may find Emily's self-sufficient and successful actions unbelievable. Jorisch's angular black line and ink-wash illustrations portray the crowded apartment and city situations with menace and gray foreboding. While not for every reader, some may find hope and strength in how one child deals with family upheaval. Susan Hepler, formerly at Burgundy Farm Country Day School, Alexandria, VA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Product Description An honest portrayal of a young girl's emotional journey amid family upheavals. Nine-year-old Emily is trying to cope with her changing world. When her father and mother grow further apart, the family's piano -- Emily's link to the good times that once flooded her home -- is sold. She decides the key to the happiness her family used to share is the piano, and so she must find it. Believing the instrument is most likely in a part of town where rich people live, Emily sets out on her search. She knocks on many doors without success, but carries on, determined to end the darkness that has descended on her home. Finally a piano teacher gives her a lead. Though the days pass slowly, she eventually receives the anticipated call. "Be there Sunday at 1 p.m. sharp," she's told. It turns out the piano is now in a convent, where it sits in the middle of a room, like royalty. Sister Isabelle tells Emily she can come by any Sunday, and she can bring her mother too. The first time Emily's mother sees the piano, she plays, sings, and cries. The darkness in their lives slowly tiptoes away as Emily and her mother rediscover happiness and the healing power music brings. From Booklist Gr. 4-6. "Our family is leaking, cracking, and shaking all over as though it were about to collapse." Beautifully translated from the French, this illustrated chapter book^B tells a story of family breakup in the voice of a young girl, Emily, who discovers her father is having an affair. Emily watches the soaps; she knows about such things. When the family moves to a new apartment, her parents are in separate rooms (Dad eventually leaves) and the family piano, which Mom played in happier times, is sold. The loss of the piano comes to represent all the emptiness in Emily's family life. Worried about her mother's increasing sadness, Emily searches for the instrument, finding it in a convent. Mom is invited to play, and parent and daughter rediscover music and community. The healing is a bit overdone ("Everything is working out"), but the child's view of adult secrets is powerfully revealed in simple poetic language and sophisticated black-and-white artwork that shows anger and sorrow as well as love. Hazel Rochman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Review Some may find hope and strength in how one child deals with family upheaval. (Susan Hepler School Library Journal) The child's view of adult secrets is powerfully revealed in simple poetic language and sophisticated black-and-white artwork that shows anger and sorrow as well as love. (Hazel Rochman Booklist 2006-01-15) The first person narrative is powerful and succinct...