Reviews

Star: The Bird Who Inspired Mozart by Mireille Messier, Matte Stephens

angiew23's review

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5.0

This picture book biography teaches readers about Mozart by telling the story of a bird that became his pet and inspired some of his music. The illustrations are beautiful and the concept, that the natural sounds of a bird could be the inspiration for famous pieces of music still celebrated today, is something that young people will enjoy. I could see Music teachers and classroom teachers sharing this story when teaching art history or about biographies that are slightly outside of the typical biographic information and genre. I would recommend this book to teachers and families of children in the 5-10 age range. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

marshaskrypuch's review

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5.0

Everything about this book is subtly designed to intrigue a young reader into exploring Mozart's music, a time in history, starlings, and the concept of narrative non-fiction. The bright and cheerful illustrations are not at all intimidating and the book exemplifies the "less is more" philosophy. A gem.

librarianryan's review

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lighthearted slow-paced

4.0

 
This is based on a true story of Mozart and his pet bird.  Turns out this bird was a regular, common starling. But this bird could carry a tune and Mozart fell in love with it and it fell in love with Mozart. The story is simple and one I think that kids would appreciate. The artwork I like, but at times it’s a little odd. I do love how the author plays with color. Overall this is a nice read and a nice story of Mozart but not one that’s truly memorable. 
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