Reviews

The Singer and the Scientist by Lisa Rose

shelleydavis's review against another edition

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5.0

This children’s picture book tells the little known story of how the singer Marian Anderson and the scientist Albert Einstein met and started a lasting friendship. The illustrations are bold and captivating - pulling even the youngest reader into the story. The writing is simple enough for children to understand the big ideas of racism, inclusion and standing up for others. This will be a great addition to any classroom.

greenteabookme's review

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5.0

Wow! What an incredible story and unbelievable that it’s true. The lead character Marian was delightful and relatable and the artistry in the drawings was beautiful. The fact that this is a true story makes it even more of a gem and I will certainly be purchasing copies for my friends kids and recommending this read. Thanks for the opportunity to review!

The authors note was just as impactful to me as the rest of the story.

5 stars

#Netgalley #TheSingerandtheScientist

jaij7's review

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5.0

Fantastic true story that I had not heard before.

carp2060's review against another edition

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5.0

A charming book about the friendship of Marian Anderson and Albert Einstein.

annieb123's review

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5.0

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Singer and the Scientist is a charmingly illustrated book for young readers by Lisa Rose with illustrations by Isabel Muñoz. Due out 1st April 2021 from Lerner on their Kar-Ben imprint, it's 32 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.

This is a well written account of Marian Anderson’s performance at the McCarter Theatre in 1937 where she met Einstein. The issues of race and segregated performances in the USA are handled in a sensitive and age appropriate manner. The text is well written and short and the illustrations are colorful and engaging. The book also includes a short retelling of the 1939 DAR concert cancellation (and Eleanor Roosevelt's subsequent resignation from the DAR and concert rescheduling at the Lincoln Memorial in front of an audience of 75,000 people).

I would recommend this one to public and school libraries, classroom use, or home library. Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

witchpony's review against another edition

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5.0

In this small copy, the author tells us about the encounter between the African-American singer Marian Anderson and the scientist Albert Einstein. After her first white-only concert, Anderson finds herself without a place to stay for the night and Einstein offers her his guest room.

The illustrations are beautiful; Anderson's hair, with that hairstyle with 1920s touches, in the transition to 1930s fashion, was what caught my eye on the cover.

Considering that it is short and that it is aimed at an audience between 5 and 11 years old, it perfectly frames the discrimination and prevailing racism of the time, making two different people come together, for the greater good.

Both children and adults should read this beautiful book, and perhaps, educating the future, we will not make the mistakes of the past again

ljrinaldi's review

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4.0

I have never heard of Marian Anderson, but what a delightful way to learn about her, and her singing, and her friendship with Albert Einstein.

As happened to many Black singers, at the time, in the 1930s, white audiences didn't mind seeing or hearing them perform, but woe be it if they wanted a room for the night.

In this case, it was Albert Einstein who came to the rescue, as he knew about discrimination, and was more than willing to let her come to his home.

I have heard the story about how Elenor Roosevelt quite the DAR in protest when Marian Anderson couldn't sing at constitution hall, but had not heard of this earlier story. What a great little picture book, and what a great way to tell about this sorry point in history.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

zabacitanovine's review against another edition

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4.0

This was an incredibly cute and heartwarming story about how Einstein and Marian Anderson became friends over social injustice and love of music.

The illustrations were so cute you just wanted to hug them, but the way Einstein holds a violin really hurt me, and I have no connection to music. :D

A big thank you to Kar-Ben Publishing ® and NetGalley for providing me with an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

librarypatronus's review

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4.0

This was very informative and interesting! I will definitely want to read it with my kids, as we do a lot of biographies for history, especially about women (and most especially queer and/or women of color). I didn’t know that Albert Einstein was an activist, I don’t know that I really even ever learned that he was Jewish and from Germany, and I had never heard of Marian Anderson. In addition to the educational nature of this, I really enjoyed the art style.

panda_incognito's review against another edition

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5.0

This nonfiction picture book tells the story of how Albert Einsten befriended Marian Anderson after he attended one of her performances. She was not able to stay at a local whites-only hotel, so he invited her to stay in his home, and they became friends. I had never heard about this before, and it is the perfect story for a picture book format, both because of its length and because the illustrations can help convey the emotions involved.

The book has a satisfying narrative arc, and addresses the impact of prejudice on both Anderson and Einsten, who was Jewish and had accepted Nazi Germany. I would highly recommend that libraries, schools, and families purchase this book, because it is extremely well-crafted and can begin important conversations about different forms of prejudice and how people can come together through elements of shared experience and personal compassion.

I received a temporary digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.