By Satoshi Kitamura (author) , Satoshi Kitamura (illustrator)
"A musical adventure in the imagination by an incomparable picture book artist."
Paperback In Stock £7.99 £7.19
Hardback In Stock £12.99 £11.69
View All Editions (2)
February 2025 Book of the Month
Satoshi Kitamura’s picture books are immediately recognisable with their uniquely expressive line and quirky angular perspectives. A fondness for celebrating children’s imagination is a hallmark of many of his books too and it’s given full rein in this glorious new story.
Hannah is alone in the garden and wishing she had someone to play with when she spots a leaf. Deciding it looks like a violin she finds a stick bow and starts to play it. Before long, birds have joined in, then the insects in the flower beds, even the clouds in the sky until everything on earth and beyond is singing and dancing to her music.
Striking centre pages show Hannah playing her violin in an azure-blue sky surrounded by instruments. All stops for dinner, or does it? Told in deadpan style, this celebration of play and invention takes us all soaring with Hannah into a limitless sky. The opportunities it opens for talking, wondering and creating are huge.
When Hannah spots a leaf on the grass, she thinks it looks like a violin, and decides to see if she can play it. Soon everything is singing and dancing to the music! A joyful book that celebrates play, creativity and the imagination within us all.
Read the full description
•Shows what makes up music: instruments, voices, the sounds of nature (insects and birds), rhythm, imagination... all combine here to create a magical concert
•Shows what music helps us do: dance, sing, share our joy with others and transport us to new worlds
•Depicts lots of different instruments with gorgeously colourful and amusing illustrations
•Reminds us that simple objects can make the best toys
•By an award-winning author and illustrator translated into over 20 languages
Praise for Hat Tricks:
‘A masterfully crafted story for tots, impeccable in its apparent simplicity, yet with all the elements of tension, resolution and surprise needed in a good story. Perfection!’ Carousel Magazine
Satoshi Kitamura was born in 1956 in Tokyo. He says that when he was young he read comics and admits that these have had a great influence on his style. He says he was also influenced by anything visual from a tin of sardines to the fine art of the East and the West. He was not trained as an artist, but at the age of 19 began to do commercial work. From 1976-1979 he worked as a commercial artist in Japan, working as an illustrator for adverts and magazines. He moved to London in 1979 and worked mainly at designing greeting cards. He started illustrating for Andersen Press in 1981 after he had an exhibition of his work at the Neal Street Gallery in Covent Garden.
We've got some great stuff related to this book in our KidsZone. Head over there and check it out now.
Best Children's Books About Music
The LoveReading4Kids Best Children's Books of the Year 2025
LoveReading4Kids' 2025 Preview of the Best Children's Books on the Horizon
the best picture books · the best bedtime stories
The Rock Family Band
Beyoncé - Little People, Big Dreams
Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara
Sounds Good! Discover 50 Instruments
Ole Könnecke and 1 more
Wally the World's Greatest Piano Playing Wombat
When Hannah spots a leaf on the grass, she thinks it looks like a violin, and decides to see if she can play it. Soon everything is singing and dancing to the music!
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Hannah and the Violin and determined it is suitable for children aged 3-6 years old
Hannah and the Violin features in the following genres: Featured Books for 3+ readers, Featured Books for 5+ readers, Books of the Month, Recommendations, Star Books, Drama / Performing Arts, Music, PSHE: Self-Awareness, Self-Esteem and Wellbeing, Personal Social Health Economic (PSHE), Children’s / Teenage: General interest, Children’s, Teenage and Educational
Paperback, Hardback. £7.19, down from the £7.99 cover price. In Stock.
Hannah and the Violin was written by Satoshi Kitamura and published by Scallywag Press
Hannah and the Violin has 32 pages
£7.19, reduced from £7.99. In Stock.
©PTC International Ltd T/A LoveReading is registered in England. Company number: 10193437. VAT number: 270 4538 09. Registered address: 157 Shooters Hill, London, SE18 3HP. Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer
The National Year of Reading starts here. Join thousands of families and schools supporting reading for pleasure across the UK.