Book Descriptions
for The Cosmobiography of Sun Ra by Chris Raschka
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
A joyful and inspired introduction to jazz pianist, composer, and conductor Sun Ra (Herman”Sonny” Blount), who “always said he came from Saturn.” Author/illustrator Chris Raschka works with that conceit in a volume that celebrates Sun Ra’s brilliant creativity that sometimes seemed otherworldly. “Being from another planet, Sun Ra was naturally interested in everything earthy ... most of all, music! It was the thing about the earth that was most like the stars.” Sun Ra navigates a childhood and young adulthood among humans who sorted themselves by color (“Sun Ra was sorted into the black variety”).
A conscientious objector during World War II, he eventually settled in Chicago, attracting other musicians, experimenting with an electronic keyboard, and forming the Arkestra, a vibrant ensemble that moved to New York, and then Philadelphia, before traveling the world. Dressed in colorful robes they made themselves, the musicians followed Sun Ra’s lead, playing music that “might be crisp and tight one moment, then wild and free the next.” Illustrations that vibrate with movement and color capture that sense of freedom. A list of selected recordings and a brief note offering additional information about Sun Ra conclude this work. (Ages 6–10)
A conscientious objector during World War II, he eventually settled in Chicago, attracting other musicians, experimenting with an electronic keyboard, and forming the Arkestra, a vibrant ensemble that moved to New York, and then Philadelphia, before traveling the world. Dressed in colorful robes they made themselves, the musicians followed Sun Ra’s lead, playing music that “might be crisp and tight one moment, then wild and free the next.” Illustrations that vibrate with movement and color capture that sense of freedom. A list of selected recordings and a brief note offering additional information about Sun Ra conclude this work. (Ages 6–10)
CCBC Choices 2015. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2015. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka shares his love of jazz great Sun Ra, just in time to mark the centennial of the musician’s birth.
Jazz musician Sun Ra (1914–1993) always said that he came from Saturn. Being from another planet, he was naturally intrigued by everything earthly — especially music, because music is the one thing on Earth most like the stars. Earthlings themselves confused Sun Ra, the way they sorted themselves by color and fought wars against one another. So he made music. And he traveled with other musicians and singers, calling themselves the Sun Ra Arkestra, playing, singing, and dancing for people all over the planet. Because music, he said, is what holds us all together. Join acclaimed author-illustrator Chris Raschka in celebrating a legend of the jazz world who was truly one of a kind.
Jazz musician Sun Ra (1914–1993) always said that he came from Saturn. Being from another planet, he was naturally intrigued by everything earthly — especially music, because music is the one thing on Earth most like the stars. Earthlings themselves confused Sun Ra, the way they sorted themselves by color and fought wars against one another. So he made music. And he traveled with other musicians and singers, calling themselves the Sun Ra Arkestra, playing, singing, and dancing for people all over the planet. Because music, he said, is what holds us all together. Join acclaimed author-illustrator Chris Raschka in celebrating a legend of the jazz world who was truly one of a kind.
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.
