TeachingBooks
The Color of Sound

Book Resume

for The Color of Sound by Emily Barth Isler

Professional book information and credentials for The Color of Sound.

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  • Publisher's Weekly:
  • Ages 11 - 14
  • TeachingBooks:*
  • Grades 5-8
  • Cultural Experience:
  • Disability
  • Jewish
  • Genre:
  • Realistic Fiction
  • Year Published:
  • 2024

The following 5 subject headings were determined by the U.S. Library of Congress and the Book Industry Study Group (BISAC) to reveal themes from the content of this book (The Color of Sound).

The following unabridged reviews are made available under license from their respective rights holders and publishers. Reviews may be used for educational purposes consistent with the fair use doctrine in your jurisdiction, and may not be reproduced or repurposed without permission from the rights holders.

Note: This section may include reviews for related titles (e.g., same author, series, or related edition).

From Publisher's Weekly

Starred review from December 11, 2023
A talented tween with synesthesia probes her Jewish family's history in this sonorous tale by Isler (AfterMath), who contemplates the generational trauma caused by the Holocaust. Twelve-year-old "musical genius" Golden Rose Solomon, who experiences sounds "as textures and colors, as feelings and temperatures and tastes," longs to cultivate a part of her identity beyond "the girl with the violin." To the frustration of her rigid mother, Shanna, Rosie goes on a music strike, forgoing symphony commitments. As punishment, she's forced to join her mom on a visit to the dying grandmother Rosie barely knows. At Shanna's childhood home, Rosie "somehow, magically, impossibly" meets a 12-year-old version of Shanna, who longs to play violin and resents her mother�"Rosie's grandmother�"for forcing her to become a bat mitzvah. From Shanna, Rosie learns that her great-grandmother survived Auschwitz, an experience that echoes through future mother-daughter relationships in her family, making Rosie wonder whether changing the past could help Shanna understand her, and help revitalize her own connection with music. Intricately entwining interpersonal growth with each character's relationship to their Jewish faith and culture, Isler highlights the role of family history in identity formation through metaphorical time travel. Color-centric imagery rendered in immersive prose translates Rosie's synesthesia in this salient celebration of family, music, and neurodiversity. Ages 11�"14. Agent: Emily Keyes, Keyes Agency.

The Color of Sound was selected by educational and library professionals to be included on the following state/provincial reading lists.

United States Lists (4)

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This Book Resume for The Color of Sound is compiled from TeachingBooks, a library of professional resources about children's and young adult books. This page may be shared for educational purposes and must include copyright information. Reviews are made available under license from their respective rights holders and publishers.

*Grade levels are determined by certified librarians utilizing editorial reviews and additional materials. Relevant age ranges vary depending on the learner, the setting, and the intended purpose of a book.

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