Shaw's insider status in the music industry, and his openness to all kinds of music from all eras, puts the fifties in perspective to the decades before it, and sets the stage for what's come since.

This is a very short and simple book about Molly going on an adventurous journey by way of her back yard. My son loves this book and wants us to read it over and over. Molly is a small child whom he can relate to, is independent in preparing herself and her bag for her trip, and says goodbye to her comfort zones (her mom, her house) to begin an amazing adventure on her hike. I would recommend this book to parents of small children, 12 to 18 months, as a great way to begin talking about adventures and what Molly may find. Children of this age begin to become more adventurous themselves whether in their homes, backyards, neighborhoods, etc. and I believe can somehow relate to the freedom Molly feels as she prepares for her hike. I rated this book with 4 stars only because I would have liked to have seen Molly take a little longer hike. Her journey seemed a bit quick to me, but perhaps not to a small child. Their imagination of Molly's hike may take them on a longer journey than my adult eyes can see!

I thought this book was captivating! It captured the essence of the music of that time. Jazz is such music of the soul. In a sense, you feel as if you know what it was like in the 1920's. When the jazz was jazz.