The Remarkable Farkle McBride

FROM OUR EDITORS

Beloved actor and musician John Lithgow delivers his first book for children -- a stunning, sensational picture book that sings! The young hero, freckle-faced Farkle McBride, is a musical genius: He plays the violin, the flute, the trombone, and the drums with incredible skill. But he's never satisfied: Something is missing. Then one day he comes to the aid of the orchestra's conductor and discovers the beauty of collaboration -- and his true calling. A bright, lively book that brings the sounds and rhythms of an orchestra to sprawling visual life, The Remarkable Farkle McBride features a double gatefold showing the entire orchestra, making it the ultimate book for the music lover in all of us.

ANNOTATION

The musical prodigy Farkle McBride tries a number of instruments before discovering that conducting the orchestra makes him happy.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Young Farkle McBride is a musical genius: He plays the violin, the flute, the trombone, and the drums with incredible skill. But he's never satisfied: Something is missing.

In his first book, actor and musician John Lithgow introduces a memorable character, a fickle yet lovable child prodigy who brings the sounds and rhythms of an orchestra to sprawling visual life. With a double gatefold showing the entire orchestra, this is the ultimate book for the music lover in all of us.

SYNOPSIS

Freckle-faced musical genius, Farkle McBride can't figure it out -- he masters all instruments, but still he is not satisfied. Something is missing. In his first book, actor and musician John Lithgow introduces a memorable character, a fickle yet lovable child prodigy who brings the sounds and rhythms of an orchestra to sprawling visual life.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

In what PW called "a romp of a tale," a prodigy's quest for the perfect instrument leads him through virtually every section of the orchestra until he steps in for an ill conductor. "The nimble verse with a limerick's beat sparkles." Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

No stranger to music (he released a CD for children titled "Singin' in the Bathtub"), actor Lithgow pens a romp of a tale about a prodigy whose quest for the perfect instrument leads him through virtually every section of the orchestra. "When Farkle McBride was a three-year-old tyke,/ All freckle-y, bony, and thin,/ He astonished his friends and his family alike/ By playing superb violin." After his debut, the easily dissatisfied diminutive genius trades in his fiddle for a flute ("He went Rootle-ee/ Tootle-ee/ Tootle-ee Too/ With all of the winds at his side"), then a trombone and subsequently percussion, all to no avail. Not until he steps in for an ill conductor does he finds his niche; a gatefold spread shows him ("satisfied!") in front of "all the instruments he ever tried." Lithgow's nimble verse with a limerick's beat sparkles as he introduces readers to the various instruments and their sounds. Payne's outrageously droll mixed media illustrations, with their blend of caricature and realism, recall Kathryn Hewitt's work in Lives of the Musicians. Although Farkle is remarkably difficult to please, his tale may well strike a chord with anyone who's ever made overtures at musicianship. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Children's Literature

Child prodigy Farkle McBride plays superb violin at three, the flute at five, trombone at seven, and percussion at nine, but no instrument satisfies him for long. At four he smashes his violin, at six he tosses his flute into a pond, and at eight he upends his trombone into a trashcan. In rollicking tongue-tickling rhyme, actor John Lithgow tells the story of "The Remarkable Farkle McBride," who eventually finds satisfaction as a conductor. Payne's exuberant illustrations almost burst from the pages, and his exaggerated facial expressions and perspectives match the tall tale qualities of the story. The musical instruments are lovingly and accurately drawn, and the background for the text is covered with musical symbols, which should please young musicians and their teachers. Musical also in it use of language, this is a story that begs to be read aloud, and is sure to be a hit at story times. 2000, Simon & Schuster, $17.00. Ages 4 to 8. Reviewer: Linnea Hendrickson

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2-At the age of three, Farkle McBride has mastered the violin, at five the flute, two years later the trombone, and by nine the entire percussion section. Unfortunately, the musical prodigy quickly tires of each new accomplishment and grows annoyed by the sounds he produces. It is only when the conductor is too ill to lead the orchestra and the child is asked to substitute that he realizes his true calling. "Poor Farkle at ten, howsoever renowned,/Reached the end of his/musical tether./But then he discovered his/favorite sound:/Musicians all playing together." The boy takes his final bow on an impressive double-gatefold spread with the orchestra behind him and his audience obviously well pleased. From the musical mobile dangling above his bassinet on the opening pages to the congratulatory bouquet at the end, it is clear that Farkle is a born musician; however, it is his sheer capriciousness that provides this contemporary tall tale with its zany humor. Payne's realistic mixed-media illustrations contain whimsical details and lots of musical innuendoes; the text appears on pages lightly imprinted with musical notation. The grotesquely enlarged heads of many characters and the dire fates suffered by several instruments are disconcerting at first but deliver a visual punch. The jaunty rhyme scheme with lots of onomatopoeia will have listeners "deedle-eeing" and "tootle-ee tooing" right along. Pair this wry and witty read-aloud with Lloyd Moss's Zin! Zin! Zin!: A Violin (S & S, 1995).-Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, NJ Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Clarissa Cruz - Entertainment Weekly