Philadelphia | Children's Books Heal

Symphony for a Broken Orchestra: How Philadelphia Collected Sounds to Save Music

Amy Ignatow, Author

Gwen Millward, Illustrator

Walker Books, Fiction, Oct. 25, 2022

Suitable for ages: 6-9

Themes: Broken musical instruments, School, Children, Musicians, Community

Opening: “Philadelphia is full of NOISE. Some noises are LOUD, and some are soft. There are sharp noises and dull noises and funny noises and sad noises. And music is everywhere in Philadelphia.”

Book Jacket Synopsis:

What happens when musical instruments can’t make the sounds we expect them to make? Is music still possible?

When the schools of Philadelphia filled with broken musical instruments, making it difficult for students to learn to play, musicians young and old came together to raise money for repairs. They played a symphony especially written for the broken instruments and showed that music is always possible — with a bit of inventiveness and improvisation.

Based on a true story, this inspiring book celebrates a community coming together to make a joyful, meaningful noise.

Why I like this book:

Amy Ignatow’s book is a must read for children and adults. It is full of heart, hope and inspiration. Her opening pages show school children playing a variety of musical instruments. Her text is lively and sound dominates with WAAH! WAAAAAH!…TIKA! TIKA! TIK! TIK!…BRAP! BRAP! and WOOOOOOWW! covering the pages as children learn to play. But, there is a big problem — many of the instruments are broken. How will kids learn to play them with broken strings, drum holes and missing keys and pieces? They can’t, so they are put in storage. The children miss their music program.

This book is a must read for children and adults. It is based on a true story of the condition of musical instruments in the Philadelphia school district and how an artistic director touring a school discovered a storeroom filled with broken and unplayable instruments. He decided to hold a community concert with professional Philadelphia musicians of all ages to raise funds to repair the instruments. A composer wrote “Symphony for a Broken Orchestra.”

Gwen Millward’s illustrations are colorful, lively and expressive. They take on a rhythm of their own in the story and speak to readers. I like the racial diversity among the children and the use of bubble quotes to capture their frustration.

More information about the nonprofit organization Broken Orchestra can be found in the back matter, including a link to an audio recording of the symphony performance.

Resources: It is my hope that this book will encourage kids to play an instrument of their choice. And encourage them to ask questions about the state of instruments in their school districts. Are there any broken instruments in storerooms that are in need of repair? This would make an excellent class project to get kids involved in making a difference.

Amu Ignatiow is the author-illustrator of the Popularity Papers series and the Odds trilogy, She lives in Philadelphia with her family.

Gwen Millward is the illustrator of many books for children, including Super Milly and the Super School Day by Stephanie Clarkson. She lives in the United Kingdom.

Every Friday, authors and KidLit bloggers post a favorite picture book. To see a complete listing of all the Perfect Picture Books (PPB) with resources, please visit author Susanna Leonard Hill’s website.

*Review copy provided by Walker Books in exchange for a review.

Time Jump Coins: An Adventure in Historic Philadelphia

Susan May Olson, Author & Publisher

Fiction, May 17, 2017

Suitable for Ages: 8-12

Themes: Time travel, Historic Philadelphia, Different Abilities, Diversity, Friendship

Synopsis (GoodReads): Imagine if you could time travel to the past just by rubbing the date on a penny!

Ten-year-olds Joey (Johanna) and Eli can time travel to any year between 1859 and 1909, simply by rubbing a coin from a set of Indian Head pennies! Old Philadelphia can be a lot of fun. They see the first phone and climb up the arm of the Statue of Liberty at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition. They get to go on a sleigh ride through a Wissahickon winter wonderland.

In between trips, Hal, proprietor of Hal’s Coins and Collectibles, teaches them tons of interesting facts about coins. However, their adventures take a serious turn when they wind up in a textile mill in Manayunk. They are shocked by the conditions for children working in the mill. They get mistaken for workers and are forced to work. They’ll be lucky if they don’t fall into the dangerous gears of the machines!

Joey wants a friend more than anything. The fact that Eli is a super-smart history whiz should make him the ideal time travel partner. But Joey has a bad temper, and Eli has Asperger’s Syndrome. Will their quirks drive them apart, or worse, get them stranded in the past forever?

Why I like this book:

Susan May Olson’s debut novel is a whimsical time-travel adventure to historic Philadelphia for Joey (Johanna) and Eli. Olson has spun a story of pure magic around an inherited 50-coin collection of Indian Head Cents, that when rubbed can take the two fifth graders back to Philadelphia between 1859-1909, and when pinched can return them home. What a clever way to travel back in time and experience history first-hand.

The main characters are memorable, but couldn’t be more opposite. Joey has a bad temper and Eli has different abilities and is socially awkward with people. But they share one thing in common — neither have friends. They are assigned to sit next to each other on the bus and they gain a respect for each other. Since Eli is a history buff, Joey shares her magic coin collection with him and its secret. Eli does much of the research for their coin jump leaps. Their growing friendship throughout the story is perhaps the highlight of the book for me.

The plot is clever, fast-paced and filled with adventure, wonder, mystery and danger — if you get lost, injured or lose the penny and don’t return in time. There are some secrets and surprises in the story. This is a great summer read and I predict tweens will enjoy the Time Jump Coins.

I especially liked Joey and Eli’s interaction with Hal, the coin collector. I had no idea that each coin has a mint mark on it beneath “In God We Trust.” P for Philadelphia, D for Denver, S for San Francisco and W for West Point.

Favorite entry from Joey’s Journal:

“The most popular kids are like a pop song you hear on the radio that everyone likes right away…And then there are other kids that are like a painting hanging on a wall that most people including you walk right by and never notice. But one day you walk by that painting and take a long look. You’re not even sure you like it at first, but you walk by slowly because you want to get to know it better. The more you get familiar with the painting, the more you realize how much there is to it and how cool it is. My friend Eli is that kind of painting.”

Susan May Olson is a former speech-language pathologist who lives with her family in Chapel Hill, N.C. Time Jump Coins is her debut novel. Visit Susan at her website, where she’s reviewed over 150 time travel stories.

Check other Middle Grade review links on author Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.