Trombone Shorty: A Picture Book Biography

by Troy Andrews, Bryan Collier (Illustrator)

Overview

A 2016 Caldecott Honor Book and Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Award Winner
Hailing from the Tremé neighborhood in New Orleans, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews got his nickname by wielding a trombone twice as long as he was high. A prodigy, he was leading his own band by age six, and today this Grammy-nominated artist headlines the legendary New Orleans Jazz Fest.
Along with esteemed illustrator Bryan Collier, Andrews has created a lively picture book autobiography about how he followed his dream of becoming a musician, despite the odds, until he reached international stardom. Trombone Shorty is a celebration of the rich cultural history of New Orleans and the power of music.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781419714658
Publisher:	Abrams Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	04/14/2015
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	10,012
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	760L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews is an internationally renowned trombone and trumpet player who leads his band Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue. He lives in New Orleans.
Bryan Collier is an acclaimed illustrator who has won three Caldecott Honors and five Coretta Scott King Awards. He lives in Upstate New York.

Editorial Reviews

With amply layered mixed-media art by Collier, this high-spirited book feels like going to a music party.

The New York Times Book Review - Maria Russo

★ 02/09/2015
The streets of New Orleans are filled with music, and so is the house of Troy Andrews, who narrates the story of his growth into the musician known as Trombone Shorty. Troy dreams of having his own band, and when he finds a battered trombone, he knows he’s on his way: “It didn’t sound perfect, but finally with a real instrument in my hand, I was ready to play.” He brings it to a Bo Diddley concert, and Diddley brings him onstage. Andrews shares the culture of Tremé, his New Orleans neighborhood, punctuating his story’s high moments with the traditional greeting—“Where y’at?” Collier’s (My Country ’Tis of Thee) collaged illustrations give the story even more joyful power. He paints sound with sunbursts of color, the fragrance of gumbo with misty swirls, and Troy’s dreams about the future with bubbles that rise from his bed as he sleeps with his arm around his trombone. If a fairy tale were set in New Orleans, this is how it would read. Ages 4–8. Illustrator’s agent: Marcia Wernick, Wernick & Pratt. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Sharp panels of color and image, perspective that dips and soars, and layers of mixed-media collage unite to feel like renditions of brass band music itself."

Booklist - Amina Chaudhri

"The storytelling is imbued with a touch of storybook glamour and generous humor...Collier’s vibrant mixed-media illustrations ably complement the text with a skillful melding of paint and photo collage that underscore the “gumbo” of street sounds and musical styles that influence Andrews’ works."

The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"Collier’s expressive watercolor collages layer and texture each page, creating a mix of images that echo the combination of styles Andrews uses to create his own “musical gumbo'...Read this one aloud to capture the sounds and sights of Trombone Shorty’s New Orleans."

The Horn Book Magazine

This vibrant memoir picture book tells the tale of a little boy who has a passion for music. Troy, or Trombone Shorty as he comes to be known, grew up in New Orleans and is so excited about music at a young age that he makes music with his friends when they do not even have any instruments. He eventually finds a broken trombone and teaches himself how to play, even though the instrument weighs nearly as much as he does. He feels so much passion when attending the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival that he plays from the audience along with Bo Diddley. Bo Diddley invites Trombone Shorty up to play with him. Afterwards, Trombone Shorty starts his own band. This fantastic book shows Trombone Shorty’s love for making “musical gumbo” through vibrant art and unique textual layout. Collier’s art combines collage and watercolor to create a distinct mood for each page of the text. The party balloons that appear throughout the book grow both physically and musically bigger as they tell a parallel tale of moving forward, succeeding and seeing the world. They appear on nearly every page and show Trombone Shorty the way to the big hot air balloon at the end. At the end of the book, Troy Andrews includes some photos of his childhood, including a photo of him on stage with Bo Diddley. Nothing in the text can prepare readers for just how little he was in that moment in time when he played on stage with Diddley. This wonderful book will inspire children of all ages. Reviewer: Staci Fox; Ages 4 to 8.

Children's Literature - Julia Onsager

04/01/2015
Gr 1–4—"Where y'at?" Troy Andrews, aka Trombone Shorty, opens his book with this phrase, letting readers know that it's New Orleans parlance for hello. In this stunning picture book autobiography, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Andrews shares the story of his early years growing up in the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans. Andrews desperately wished to emulate the musicians in his family and those he saw performing all over his city, so he and his friends made their own instruments out of found materials, played in the streets, and marched with bands. When one day he found a battered, discarded trombone bigger than he was, Andrews finally had a real instrument to play, and he practiced day and night, acquiring the nickname Trombone Shorty from his older brother. The moment Bo Diddley pulled Andrews on stage to play with him during the New Orleans jazz festival was a turning point, and he hasn't stopped performing since. Collier's beautiful watercolor, pen-and-ink, and collage artwork picks up the rhythm and pace of Andrew's storytelling, creating an accompaniment full of motion and color. Each spread offers a visual panoply of texture, perspective, and angles, highlighting the people and the instruments. Andrews's career is still on the rise, his music gaining an ever wider audience, and this title will be an inspiration to many. VERDICT Coupled with a selection of Trombone Shorty's music, this work will make for fun and thoughtful story sharing. A must-have.—Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA

School Library Journal

★ 2015-01-20
An autobiographical tale of a young man who started making "musical gumbo" at age 4. Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews relates how he grew up in Tremé in New Orleans, American's oldest black neighborhood, where he heard music everywhere. Young Troy admires his big brother's trumpet playing and makes music without instruments with his friends. After finding a discarded trombone, the little boy teaches himself to play. Troy narrates: "I was so small that sometimes I fell right over…because it was so heavy." (Despite Collier's illustrations of young "Shorty," nothing prepares readers for his size in the parade photograph in the backmatter.) When Bo Diddley hears him playing in the crowd at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the jazz great invites him to the stage. An author's note explains that Troy started a band at age 6 and joined Lenny Kravitz's band at 19. Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, his band, tours the world, and Troy shares New Orleans music and culture through his foundation and music academy. Employing his unmistakable mixed-media collage images, Collier portrays the story of this living legend with energy and style, making visible the swirling sounds of jazz. This well-told and exquisitely illustrated story of a musician with a steep career trajectory will inspire young readers to pursue their passions, despite the challenges. (illustrator's note) (Picture book/biography. 4-8)

Kirkus Review