Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

Celebrating the incomparable jazz legend Miles Davis, Berman and Brown focus on the people, sounds, and experiences that shaped his unique ear, laying the foundation for a nearly half-century hallmark career.It can prove quite difficult to share the life story of Miles Davis for younger audiences. Looking beyond the pace-setting, genre-redefining musical legacy, a whole host of complications appear. Here Berman trains her lens on a young Miles: navigating Jim Crow-era segregation in high school, breaking out to finding his place in a bustling New York jazz scene, and navigating early-career anxieties, strife, and "dark days" before taking center stage again at 29 as the audience "goes wild…electrified and satisfied." In this rendering that accents change just as much as genius, readers are left with lessons of perseverance, critical listening, and the importance of embracing their own uniqueness. Brown goes to work on the illustrations, accompanying the free-verse text with inspired ink-and-watercolor paintings that use color and perspective to evoke Miles' sound. An amazing touch throughout is the inclusion of timeless quotes from Miles himself in a display type that appropriately acknowledges the gravelly, gruff voice that made those sparingly delivered words pop that much more. Neither the primary text nor the author's note addresses Davis' serial abuse, so this is just an introduction.A stirring, soulful, well-researched look at the groundwork that informed Miles' signature sound, offering an entry point to a towering, complicated figure who reshaped 20th-century music again and again. (illustrator's note, discography, bibliography) (Picture book/biography. 7-10)

ALA Booklist (Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2019)

From a young age, Miles Davis was obsessed with music. He started learning the trumpet at 13 and went on to become one of the most beloved and celebrated Black jazz artists. This free-verse picture book follows Miles, who, throughout his life, never stopped listening to the sounds of the world and the music other people made. He goes to Juilliard to learn how to play classically, and he later picks up boxing to help him "gain strength / and blowing power / to control his sound." Readers follow Miles through his disappointments, triumphs, and, most important, his willingness to change: "I ain't never been scared of doing new things." The third-person free verse is interspersed with first-person recollections from Miles, and debut illustrator Brown does a satisfactory job of depicting Miles Davis in the different stages of his life, and of mimicking the movement in the words and music through his artwork. An entertaining introduction to the life of a famous jazz musician.

Horn Book (Thu Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Loose free verse with pared down language picks up on the sounds of Miles Davis's (19261991) childhood as he hones the trumpet style that will later make him a jazz great. Text and illustration alike for this picture book biography have an appropriately improvisational feel; Brown's unfinished-looking ink drawings are enhanced by energetic watercolors. Interspersed quotes from Davis in a handwritten font lend immediacy to the text.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Celebrating the incomparable jazz legend Miles Davis, Berman and Brown focus on the people, sounds, and experiences that shaped his unique ear, laying the foundation for a nearly half-century hallmark career.It can prove quite difficult to share the life story of Miles Davis for younger audiences. Looking beyond the pace-setting, genre-redefining musical legacy, a whole host of complications appear. Here Berman trains her lens on a young Miles: navigating Jim Crow-era segregation in high school, breaking out to finding his place in a bustling New York jazz scene, and navigating early-career anxieties, strife, and "dark days" before taking center stage again at 29 as the audience "goes wild…electrified and satisfied." In this rendering that accents change just as much as genius, readers are left with lessons of perseverance, critical listening, and the importance of embracing their own uniqueness. Brown goes to work on the illustrations, accompanying the free-verse text with inspired ink-and-watercolor paintings that use color and perspective to evoke Miles' sound. An amazing touch throughout is the inclusion of timeless quotes from Miles himself in a display type that appropriately acknowledges the gravelly, gruff voice that made those sparingly delivered words pop that much more. Neither the primary text nor the author's note addresses Davis' serial abuse, so this is just an introduction.A stirring, soulful, well-researched look at the groundwork that informed Miles' signature sound, offering an entry point to a towering, complicated figure who reshaped 20th-century music again and again. (illustrator's note, discography, bibliography) (Picture book/biography. 7-10)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Cornell Berman-s sensitive story of Miles Davis recounts his formative influences and development as a musician. With prudently placed line breaks, Berman-s writing mimics the cadence of jazz, and the text emphasizes the often frustrating process of mastering an instrument: -Overcome with exhaustion/ yet feeling exhilarated,/ he knows he-s moving ahead,/ away from bebop,/ to create a new way/ to play his trumpet.- Brown-s pen-and-ink and watercolor art conveys both the

School Library Journal (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Gr 3-7 From a very early age, Davis was captivated by the music and rhythmic sounds around him. Nestled up to the radio to hear jazz legends like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, Davis longed to make his own kind of music. For his 13th birthday, he received a trumpet and never looked back, though his rise to fame was not easy. He faced discouragement in his ability to make the trumpet produce the particular sounds he wanted and exhaustion from attending Julliard while also playing in night clubs in order to learn from other musicians. His big break came when Dizzy Gillespie left Charlie Parker's band and Davis stepped in. Bebop wasn't enough for him; he yearned to develop his own style, eventually forming his own band to play music that was "cool, relaxed, with a lighter, lyrical feel." At this point in the narrative, the author references the "dark days" when Davis nearly gave up his craft, but no details are provided. The book ends after Davis receives an invitation to play at the Newport Jazz Festival where he stuns the massive audience. Within the text, the word listened is italicized every time it is used to emphasize how intently Davis engaged with the sounds he heard. The author effectively sprinkles in Davis's own words in larger, darker font. The lyrical prose is written in short stanzas that beg to be read aloud. Brown's art is warm, stylized realism that, along with the text, conveys the earnestness and enthusiasm of Davis's beginnings. VERDICT A great introductory biography to this musician's beginnings through age 29. Maggie Chase, Boise State University, ID