Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln
Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln is a biographical story written by Margarita Engle, and illustrated by Rafael López. It's a Pura Belpre winner, and was found on that list of awards. I obtained a copy of the book from my local library, and thoroughly enjoyed flipping through the pages and seeing the illustrations.
Dancing Hands is a biography.
The target age group is listed as four to eight years old, and grade wise, for preschool to third grade.
The book details the childhood of Teresa Carreño, her move to the united states, and her path to eventually playing for President Lincoln. Yet, Teresa worries that her music won't be able to comfort those who need it, and she must overcome her own worries to succeed.
Much like Atticus Caticus, the cover art immediately grabbed my attention when I was looking at the Pura Belpre awards list. The contrast of gray and the colors coming from the piano had me admiring it, and I simply had to know what this book was about. Biography books for kids are always fascinating to me, and I was curious how this one would go because sometimes authors focus too much on providing information and not telling a story. On the other hand, sometimes they get too wrapped up in telling a story that the facts get muddled and lost. I wasn't sure if this book would fall into either category, but the only way to find out would be to read the book for myself.
The selected criteria for evaluation are Style and Language, Illustration, and Accuracy.
The style and language of Dancing Hands is subtle and isn’t exactly noticeable due to the fact that reading it feels like a normal book, but looking at the way the sentences are structured and separated, it’s clear that there’s meant to be a rhythm while reading. The language isn’t too complex, but it’s also not too easy to look down on young readers. Bigger words are included to describe whatever scene is being portrayed in the illustrations, as well as carrying along the story. The language to craft together scenes is also very descriptive and adds to the tale, preventing young readers from getting too bored and seeing this as just a book of information.
The illustration is my favorite part of this book because of the detail placed in it. Not only does it add to the story, but the fact that the use of color is incredibly present is something I adore. In scenes where there’s an absence of music, the colors are darker and drab, dulled down compared to the scenes where music is being talked about or played. In those scenes, the colors are bright and vibrant, paired with drawings of nature coming from and surrounding the piano. Even on the cover, the distinction of color is present and fascinating. Color is definitely the main illustration device used in this book, and it’s wonderful.
When it comes to accuracy as this is a biographical story, it’s important that information be correct. Unfortunately, I was unable to locate how Engle got her information for this book and see if she used reputable sources. However, the information is still accurate. An article written by Holly Chung about Teresa Carreño’s life was something I used to cross reference the book and the facts being stated, and it all lined up in a neat manner. The book states Carreño’s childhood with correct information of her move to the United States and the journey to play the piano for President Lincoln. Some details are omitted, such as her study under Louis Moreau Gottschalk (Chung, 2023), but the simple nature of the book doesn’t require specific details of her life.
Chung, H. (2023, September 6). Virtuosity and nostalgia: Teresa Carreño and Chopin. Classical KDFC. https://www.kdfc.com/articles/virtuosity-and-nostalgia-teresa-carreno-and-chopin
Engle, M., López, R. (2019). Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln. Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
