Can anyone recommend biographies of musicians for 12 year olds?

http://www.kathleenkrull.com/books.html

scroll down Little K - they have Lives of Musicians I think. I am not sure if that is what you are looking for. But we have read many of the athletes biographies listed and I thought they were appropriate.

Edit: No, I was wrong. This is not the one we read. I am still looking. But this one looks interesting.

I didn't read thoroughly either...1960's and beyond. Sorry.

That's a tough one as most musicians lead x-rated lifes. The Beatles might
have PG13 biographies, but the Stones definitely not. Anything from the
80s and 90s isn't appropriate either. Oh wait, I think Jon Bon Jovi has a family
type live situation, but I don't think there is a book available.

Hm, how about Buddy Holly? ABBA?
There is one about John Lennon, that's probably not too bad.
Morton wrote a biography about Madonna.
There is a book about Bob Marley

I haven't read any of them so I don't know if they're childproof.

Thanks, MisMi. His high interest musicians are all post 1960s. And one longer biography (200 pages or so) would fit the bill for some of his classwork. But, I like the idea of those books to build initial interest in readers.

Thanks CJ - the real problem here is that I don't know if the reason he's interested in the music or the lifestyle. But, I told him and his mom I'd put some effort into the search. I am not coming up with much.

I can't think of any G rated rock musicians....How about Mozart?

When I was 10 I was reading all those guys's bios

Thinking, thinking ....

But haven't thought of anything yet, sorry, k .....

So much easier to think of suitable books for adolescents or young adults. 12 years old is hard.

Maybe I'll see if I can find Alex Chilton's biography. I'll read it through to see if it's appropriate.

Here are a few more additions to the ones I gave you on Facebook:

This is a long list and I can't tell which ones are and are not for young teens. But, this is a good list of the rock era and those that came after:

http://us.macmillan.com/all/editorslist/General/RocknRollMusicBooks


Here's another website that will give you leads for similar biographies of rock era musicians. There's a section toward the middle of the page that has a list of Websites By Kids For Kids links that may have further reading suggestions:

http://42explore.com/rocnroll.htm

They also have this section for teachers where you may find some book recommendations:

Websites For Teachers
Programs for Teachers from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Grades 7-12)

http://www.rockhall.com/programs/plans.asp
Check out this large set of lesson plans that uses the history of Rock and Roll to teach lessons that span the curriculum and give insight into the significance of the role Rock and Roll has played in the evolution of American society.


Where Did Rock and Roll Come From? from AskEric Lessons

http://askeric.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Arts/Music/MUS0203.html
The student will use specialized music reference sources to locate information about the origins of rock and roll.

no promises, as I've not read it, but i would guess Tom not to be real graphic...

http://www.amazon.com/Runnin-Down-Dream-Petty-Heartbreakers/dp/0811862011

(i would guess there to also be a Dylan book within your standards, I will look a bit)

A littler earlier in the time line. Check out pbskids.org.jazz for bios of Louis and Ella, Benny and Duke written for kids.

I don't even know about muscians back from when I was 12,
many decades ago, but he has the right to read anything that he wants,
if he gets a hold of it, regardless of what his parents or any school want. He is not a slave.

The parents and the school teachers can control THEIR OWN reading habits,
not anyone else 's. That is life in a free country.





David

This ought to help:

http://www.bpl.org/questions/

Click on Ask a Librarian Chat (I went to the library in your area) and they'll research the books for you while you chat. It's one of my favorite library features.

Thanks everyone, I'll check the links and leads out........

I haven't read this book, but it has short biographies of some great blues artists that he may love. http://tinyurl.com/ygukdeq

"Bound for Glory" is older than the 60's but is a very cool book and manages to be edgy without being x-rated: