If not for a stint in reform school, young Louis Armstrong might never have become a musician. It was a teacher at the Colored Waifs? Home who gave him a cornet, promoted him to band leader, and saw talent in the tough kid from the even tougher New Orleans neighborhood called Storyville. But it was Louis Armstrong's own passion and genius that pushed jazz into new and exciting realms with his amazing, improvisational trumpet playing. His seventy-year life spanned a critical time in American music as well as black history. [This book description comes from a different edition of this title. Please report any inaccuracies].

 

 

This book features in the following series: Who Was, Who Was? .

This book has been graded for interest at 8-12 years.

There are 106 pages in this book. This book was published in 2005 by Turtleback Books .

John O'Brien, author and illustrator of The Twelve Days of Christmas and Mother Hubbard's Christmas, lives in Delran, New Jearsey. Yona Zeldis McDonough is the author of many books for children, including Sisters in Strength , Anne Frank , and Louisa: The Life of Louisa May Alcott . Ms. McDonough lives in Brooklyn, New York.