Illustrations and rhyming text celebrate the roots of jazz music.

"In the summer of 1988, twelve-year-old Chuck Bell is sent to stay with his grandparents, where he discovers jazz and basketball and learns more about his family's past." --

Tired of watching over their soon-to-be-hatched eggs, four father penguins form a jazz band and travel to New York to play at all the coolest clubs.

"1928. Zora Broussard arrived in New Orleans with not much more than a bag of clothes, a beautiful voice, and a pair of enchanted red shoes. Her magic caused a tragic accident, and now Zora wants to avoid her overbearing aunt and mean-spirited cousins. As a Black woman in the South, music is her only means of escape. When Zora gets the chance to perform in a prominent jazz club, she meets a white pianist named Phillip with magic of his own, including...

John Coltrane's musical composition is performed by a box, a snowflake, some raindrops, and a kitten.

Illustrations and rhyming text evoke the rhythms of jazz music.

Ruby's loud voice annoys everyone around her, until she learns to control her volume with the help of her new jazz musician friends.

A group of toddlers move and play, hum and sleep to a jazz beat.

The jazzy alphabet boogies and sings, making hot, cool, pizzazzy street-jammin' jazz.

A young rat hides in his father's bass case and tags along as he plays and scats around the big city.