This book is absolutely wonderful for preschool - 6th grade children. The songs and activities are easy for the teacher and the student to learn.

Being a fan of "Sheep In A Jeep" and all its sequels, I waited impatiently for "Raccoon Tune". It was well worth the wait! I read this one often as a bedtime story and my children (aged 10 and 6) are giggling every time. Of course Mom is right there in the thick of it too! The illustrations really make this book! I'll use this one at the Nature Center where I work with my Preschool Storytime crowd - they'll love it!

The book Roadwork by Stephen King is a exceting, Thrilling, and mind turing book. It is exceting because every little things that happens in the book is exceting. The book is also thrilling because once you start reading the reader never want to stop. The reader wants to find out what happens. It is also mind turing book. The reader never knows what is going to happen with any of the characters in the book. The reader don't know if the characters are going to die or just live or ever go crazy. The reader always knows what the character is thinking or feeling. When the book is execting is when one character named Bart stsrts to blow up all the working machines with gasoline. The book is thrilling when Bart and his wife Mary were at a restaurant then they started arguing and got into a big fight and started throwing cups and food at each other. When the book was a mind turing was when at the end when Bart was in his house and the police was outside tring to get him out of the house....................

This book of trios contains fun and beautiful music - something any number of instruments can use in performance. The selections made by Watson are excellent, and they can be played by any intermediate student, on through to professionals. Rhythms are basic, and most dynamic and musical interpretation will need to be added by performers, as there is little editing, but I personally like that aspect. The songs speak for themselves too, with much inherent phrasing. The melodies of the faster pieces are bright and jaunty, and the slower movements have some lyrical and dolce moments.

Wow, Sam Bush is a super-star! This stuff is hard, but well worth playing! There's a diversity of things in it, from traditional style bluegrass mandolin to fiddle tunes and even this crazy russian ragtime song! It's worth it just to have to the CD for listening pleasure.

Epstein expertly culls available documentary evidence, including contemporary accounts as well as such sources as runaway slave notices mentioning that the slave in question was a fiddler, to fill in a lot of gaps in our knowledge of how African music developed when it was transplanted to North America. The book is well-written and full of groundbreaking research. It's absolutely essential if you are interested in this subject.

I bought this book because it traces the history of the mountain dulcimer westward on the wilderness trail. Madeline MacNeil offers a map and directions and black and white photos to direct you on a modern pilgrimage of this trail, if you would like to experience the modern trail first hand. This is a trip I would like to take in the future. The history is straightforward and clear, and dulcimer tabulatures are given for tunes that came from different locations along the trail. Fascinating material to be used for entertainers, reenactors, storeytellers and dulcimer players. Audiences enjoy knowing brief histories and how tunes fit them. There are many early tunes in this instruction manual. The tab is clear and many early appalachian tunings are used. The only recommendation that I would make, is it would be nice if Madeline MacNeil and Ralph Smith had made an accompanying CD of all the tunes in the book. I would buy it!

When I first read the book I thought it would be just another book about how bad music is for kids but Al talks about the positive aspects of music and a persons outlook as well as the negative. If a parent only reads one book about talking to thier kids about music then this is the one.

My fourth-grade students love these songs. The types of songs range from county and western to rap. The songs are fun, varied, and (most importantly) help students memorize the multiplication facts. I highly recommend this resource. (I hope a CD version will eventually be published.)

Own the book, and am listed in my father's paragraph. Of course I am biased- I am a 2nd cousin of the author. Kudos to Lavern for his many hours of research and his time in putting all of his information on paper.