Jazz Fly 2: The Jungle Pachanga (book w/ audio CD)
K-Gr 3–Jazz Fly and his band can only get to and from a jungle club gig (and out of trouble) if they use the right Spanish words. But on the CD, Gollub tells young audiences that Spanish is not the only language to listen for in this story. They also must listen for “jazz words”: nonsense syllables that evoke classic scat singing. The Spanish words appear in pink text, while jazz words appear in green. This technique helps young readers distinguish between the two. While the colorful text and bright illustrations will appeal to children, this book may be most effective in conjunction with the CD. The lively narration brings the text's jazz and Latin rhythms to life; this quality may not be evident when read by less musically talented adults. The author also adds effective sound effects, such as club chatter and rain-forest noises, which suggest atmosphere without drowning out the narration. His musical flair also extends to introducing instruments. Gollub presents the name of an instrument, the sound it makes, and then plays a few notes. His note explains his creative process and gives educators useful information and ideas. This book is best suited for music units or public-library music programs.Mary Landrum, Lexington Public Library, KY© Copyright 2010.  Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc.  No redistribution permitted.