Title: All Around the Kitchen
Author: Kenneth K. Guilmartin
Illustrator: Deborah Melmon
Publisher: Music Together LLC
ISBN: 978-0-9897814-0-4
Page Count: 32 pages
Quote: “May, may all, may all children, may all people everywhere live in peace, sweet peace. Peaceful minds, peaceful hearts, peace on earth. Sweet … peace on earth.”
Audience: Part of the Music Together series, this targets infants to early elementary school-aged children and those that like nursery rhymes or short stories put to music.
Contents: This oversized book comes with a coded card for online internet access for a free downloadable matching song. The hardbound includes a welcome, story, activities, music page, and how to get more information and music on their website:
Author: Words and music are by founder/director Kenneth K. Guilmartin. He aims to teach children music by adapting to the needs of young children in the musical classes his website offers.
Illustrator: The artwork by Kristina Swarner covers most of the large pages with designs of children holding hands, promoting peace. With a few dark night scenes, the colorful opened two page pictures will keep children occupied as they view close-ups or vast scenery that has white font wording overlapping them.
Description: Having originally written the song for Music Together’s school’s celebration of the fortieth anniversary of UNICIF, it was retitled in memory of 9/11. Its non-religious, non-political theme is simple: we should have peace with one another. Activities include call-and-response singing between parent and child, discussions on having peace, singing a lullaby, and singing this song in other venues.
Characters: With no named children, there are close ups of a boy and two girls along with several children holding hands.
Pros: The upbeat music is easy to understand and energetic. The list of activities at the back of the book encourages creativity, learning, and appreciating others by being peaceful.
Cons: The simplistic repetition of a song being replayed may bother some individuals (especially parents) after constant listening.
Opinion: Children will enjoy playing this download while reading and looking at the colorful pictures. With the book including repetitive words, it promotes learning and recognizing spelling and pronunciation. Music Together does a delightful job reminding children are musical with this nicely illustrated book. With plenty of fun sounds on the CD, children will be singing this melody in no time.
Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Appreciation: Thanks to Music Together for furnishing this complimentary book in exchange for a review based on the reader’s honest opinion.
This review will be posted on Amazon with links on Bookfun.org, Godinterest, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.
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