Ray Charles
Sharon Bell Mathis, George Ford (Illustrator), Eida de La VegaBooks.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Overview
As a young boy he fell in love with music, and as a man, the world fell in love with his music. Ray Charles and his soulful, passionate rhythms and melodies have been embraced around the world for decades. Now, in this beautiful new edition of an award-winning biography, readers can follow Charles from his boyhood, when he lost his sight and learned to read and write music in Braille, until the age of 40, when he had become a world-renowned jazz and blues musician packing auditoriums and stadiums. And in a new introduction and afterword, the author updates Charles’s life to the present.A biography of the Black musician who became famous despite his blindness.
Synopsis
As a young boy he fell in love with music, and as a man, the world fell in love with his music. Ray Charles and his soulful, passionate rhythms and melodies have been embraced around the world for decades. Now, in this beautiful new edition of an award-winning biography, readers can follow Charles from his boyhood, when he lost his sight and learned to read and write music in Braille, until the age of 40, when he had become a world-renowned jazz and blues musician packing auditoriums and stadiums. And in a new introduction and afterword, the author updates Charles s life to the present.
Children's Literature
Life has not always been one of total darkness for Ray Charles, but life also has never been easy for him. When he was born in 1930, Ray Charles Robinson (who later dropped his surname to avoid being confused with the boxer Sugar Ray Robinson) could see. At the age of six, his diseased left eye had to be removed, and a year later blindness struck his other eye. His physical handicap did not deter his mother from instilling a spirit of independence and self-sufficiency in her son, sometimes to the chagrin of neighbors. This spirit enabled him to face the hard times that developed after he was orphaned at the age of 15 and had to strike out on his own, as well as to appreciate the good ones that accompanied his fame as a jazz musician. Originally published in 1973, this latest edition of Ray Charles is still engaging and includes updated information about the subject in a new introduction and afterword by the author. The text of the story has not changed dramatically. The charcoal drawings by the illustrator are still very moving and powerful, and they eloquently capture episodes in the life of Charles. This award winning book—the recipient of the Coretta Scott King Author and Illustrator Awards—will make a handsome addition to any juvenile biography collection. 2001 (orig. 1973), Lee & Low Books, $16.00. Ages 8 to 11. Reviewer: Jeanette Lambert