Music and Drum: Voices of War and Peace, Hope and Dreams

Grade 5-9. A collection of poems that focuses on the effects of war and the hope for peace. The contributors range from well-known writers such as Carl Sandburg and Langston Hughes to young people living in countries torn by violence. The first set of poems addresses the physical and emotional devastation of war. Works such as 11-year-old Amit Tal's "Father and Son" ("He wanted just this once/To live again with his Dad...But the war silenced the song,/A love song of a father and his son...") strip away any thoughts that war is a heroic conflict without pain and destruction. The second section focuses on peace. These poems look beyond the battles to what can come next. Nine-year-old Matti Yosef writes, "I don't like wars./They end in wreaths and monuments;/I like Peace come to stay,/And it will some day." The final part presents dreams of an existence where war is unknown. The digitally manipulated photographs have been combined, tinted, and filtered to produce gauzy, dreamlike compositions that invite contemplation. People of various races and ages are depicted in images that relate to the selections and have a message of their own. Its brevity and clarity make it an appealing and accessible choice for independent reading. All three titles would be useful for teachers trying to help students comprehend the many facets of warfare.