A warm and witty portrait of child prodigy and world-famous classical musician Glenn Gould. Glenn was a child who knew his own mind — he liked boats but did not like fishing; he enjoyed puns and pranks but did not like bullying; he loved learning but did not like school … but more than anything else he loved to play the piano. Glenn had a professional performing career by the time he was fifteen; he gave concerts all over the world in his twenties. He became best known for his interpretation of Bach’s Goldberg Variations. But Glenn grew to dislike concerts — the hall was too cold, or he didn’t feel well, or the audience made too much noise (he didn’t even like their applause!). He discovered that when he played and recorded music in an empty concert hall, he could make it sound exactly the way he wanted. He could do what he loved best, while being completely himself.Sarah Ellis’s beautifully written portrait of Glenn Gould is complemented by Nancy Vo’s gorgeous illustrations, bringing the life and times of this extraordinarily talented musician to readers young and old.Includes a fascinating author’s note and resources for further information. Key Text Featuresadditional informationafterwordauthor’s notebibliographybiographical informationbiographical noteexplanationfactsfurther informationfurther readinghistorical contextillustrationsinformational notephotographssourcesvignetteswriting inspiration Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts).CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.
