Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay

Description

From award-winning author Susan Hood and illustrator Sally Wern Comport comes the extraordinary true tale of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay, an orchestra made up of children playing instruments built from recycled trash. Ada Rios grew up in Cateura, a small town in Paraguay built on a landfill. She dreamed of playing the violin, but with little money for anything but the bare essentials, it was never an option...until a music teacher named Favio Chavez arrived. He wanted to give the children of Cateura something special, so he made them instruments out of materials found in the trash. It was a crazy idea, but one that would leave Ada-and her town-forever changed. Now, the Recycled Orchestra plays venues around the world, spreading their message of hope and innovation.

Susan Hood has written more than 200 picture books. She has received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and Booklist, and her book Spike, The Mixed-Up Monster won the 2013 International Latino Award and was selected for the Charlotte Zolotow Highly Commended List. The Tooth Mouse was named a 2013 Best Book of the Year by Bank Street and the Cooperative Children's Book Center. Prior to becoming an author, Susan was a children's magazine editor at Scholastic and Instructor Magazine, a book editor at Sesame Workshop, and the Children's Content Director of Nick Jr. Magazine. Ada's Violin is her latest nonfiction picture book and Lifeboat 12 is her first novel in verse. Visit her at SusanHoodBooks.com/Home. Sally Wern Comport has illustrated numerous picture books and novels, including Love Will See You Through: Martin Luther King Jr.'s Six Guiding Beliefs (as told by his niece); Brave Margaret: An Irish Adventure; Hanging Off Jefferson's Nose: Growing Up on Mt. Rushmore; and the Spy Mice series. She has also translated her picture making skills to various large-scale public, private, and institutional artworks. Sally lives with her husband and two daughters in Annapolis, Maryland, where she operates Art at Large Inc. Learn more at ArtAtLargeInc.com.

"The mixed-media collages are a particular effective medium for this true story, layering images of Ada and the orchestra over the landfill. The nuances of the subject may strike a stronger chord with adults rather than children, but the interesting visuals and the underlying message of hope and perseverance should help this find an audience." -- Booklist "Comport's complex, digitally enhanced collages combine acrylics, drawing, and layered typographic elements, conveying both the oppressive omnipresence of garbage and the functional beauty of the handcrafted instruments. . . . Pair with the suggested video links to experience the music of a remarkable, resilient cultural community. " -- Kirkus Reviews *"A virtuoso piece of nonfiction, gloriously told and illustrated." -- School Library Journal, Starred Review * "Comport (Love Will See You Through) employs a vibrant collage technique...to form colorful, almost ethereal backdrops. . .[An] uplifting, instructive story." -- Publishers Weekly, Starred Review "The illustrations, compilations of torn paper, paint, and pen and ink illustrations, add to the feeling of being within the landfill, and are a beautiful representation of the location...Highly Recommended." -- School Library Connection Recipient of the E.B. White Read Aloud Award