The Piano Recital

by Akiko Miyakoshi

Other authorsAkiko Miyakoshi (Illustrator)
Hardcover, 2019

Description

"It's the day of Momo's very first piano recital, and she is terribly nervous. Today is the day of a little mouseling's very first performance, too, and she's just as nervous as Momo. The mouseling invites Mom to watch her performance. Momo follows the mouseling through a small door backstage, where she's met with an amazing sight: an elaborate miniature theatre, and an audience of finely dressed mice! When the Grand Mouse-ter takes the stage, a hush falls over the crowd and a magical show unfolds - a circus, a magic act, acrobats! Momo is delighted. And when it's the mouseling's turn to take the stage, Momo soothes her little friend's nerves - her own now long forgotten - and accompanies her on piano. As Momo finishes her piece and gives a bow, she's surprised to see that her audience isn't furry and miniature, but human! And they're all clapping - for her! A proud Momo is quite sure she can hear mouse paw-clapping, too..."--… (more)

Publication

Kids Can Press (2019), Edition: Illustrated, 32 pages

User reviews

LibraryThing member AmaliaGavea
Our little Momo is dressed in her most beautiful dress, ready for her first piano recital. However, she is extremely nervous, peering through the backstage curtain, watching and waiting for her turn to face the audience. Suddenly, she feels a light touch on the hem of her dress. What is this? A
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mouse dressed in a dress as beautiful as Momo’s! Momo is led into the world of another recital in a hall where the artists and the audience are mice, dressed in colourful clothes.

In this beautiful picture book, Miyakoshi depicts the unbreakable bond between children and the natural world and introduces us to a gifted child whose talent is equal to her kind heart. She shows us that stories are journeys to worlds beyond our imagination that can help us fight stress and anxiety from a very early age. I can definitely relate to this. Each time my students are about to sit for an exam or even before a regular written test, I tell them a story (which obviously varies from level to level) or a personal experience related to a particular issue. It works wonders for their peace of mind. They feel more relaxed and less stressed out.

The beautiful illustrations are full of quirkiness and tranquility and the text is whimsical and clever. Absolutely suitable for younger children. This is one more picture book for my students’ collection and I cannot wait to read more by Akiko Miyakoshi.

Many thanks to Kids Can Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review,

My reviews and photos of the lovely illustrations can be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
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LibraryThing member AbigailAdams26
Feeling quite nervous on the day of her first piano recital, young Momo is waiting in the wings for her turn when she spies an equally nervous little mouseling, who is also about to perform. Of course, the mouseling is due to perform in a miniature theater behind the walls of the human one in which
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Momo will be playing. Soon Momo has found her way to that theater, guided by her new murine friend, and in watching the many little mouse performers, and helping her new friend overcome her stage fright, she forgets her own. In fact, so absorbed is she in the experience (this daydream?) that she only comes to as she finished her piano piece on stage...

Originally published in Japan in 2012, and translated into English this year (2019), The Piano Recital is the fourth picture-book I have read from the immensely talented author/illustrator, Akiko Miyakoshi. Having greatly enjoyed such titles as The Tea Party in the Woods and The Way Home in the Night, I have eagerly anticipated the arrival of this book, and once I did have the chance to read it, was not disappointed! As always with Miyakoshi, the artwork - done in pencil, charcoal and acrylic gouache - was simply lovely, capturing the emotion and enchantment of the story perfectly. The story, too, was enchanting, with that surrealist sense of fantasy that seems to characterize its creator's work. I liked that Momo's experiences at the mouse theater could be interpreted either as a day-dream, or as an actual fantastic occurrence. Either way, it helped her to deal with her own fear, so in that sense, it was real. Recommended to fellow Miyakoshi fans, and to anyone looking for beautiful picture-books about young musicians, overcoming stage fright, or experiencing magical things.
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Awards

Language

Original language

Japanese

Physical description

10.9 inches

ISBN

1525302574 / 9781525302572
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