She Gave Him Joy

A lot of people have playlists of music they prefer.  Some will have multiple playlists; one for exercise, one for creativity, one for concentration or relaxation.  Different music speaks to different people at different times.  Conversely a certain song or musician can connect and has connected with thousands of people during human history.

In the United States of America, for four years (and truthfully for some time before and after), this nation was torn by the Civil War from April 12, 1861 to April 9, 1865.  In December of 1853, on a different continent, a baby girl was born.  Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreno Played The Piano For President Lincoln (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, August 27, 2019) written by Margarita Engle with illustrations by Rafael Lopez is the story of this musically gifted child who helped heal a grieving parent and national leader and his family.  One person can and will continue to make a difference. 

WHEN TERESA was a little girl
in Venezuela, Mama sang lullabies
while Papa showed Teresita how
to let her happy hands dance
across all the beautiful
dark and light keys
of a piano.

In making melodies on the piano, Teresa learned several things.  She was able to make sounds which imitated those inhabitants in the natural world.  Playing the piano was hard and took a lot of work but it was a way to soften her sadness and share her joy with others.  By the time she was six she could write her own songs.  A year later she performed in a small space within a cathedral.  Isn't this amazing?

At eight years old her life changed drastically.  She and her parents had to flee their country due to war, leaving everything she knew and loved behind her.  Their ship after sailing on stormy seas landed in New York.  The people and the language they spoke did little to make her feel welcome plus the United States was engaged in the Civil War.

Playing on a new piano saved this child.  She practiced and practiced.  Music of all kinds filled the air in her home.  She was soon given a new nickname, the Piano Girl.  Something wonderful happened to Teresa.  People loved her music and she was soon performing on stage with other musicians.

Perhaps she was wondering if her life could get any better than playing piano music for people and traveling to other cities.  It did get better.  She received a request to play for President Abraham Lincoln and his family at the White House!  She was ten years old.

What could she do during a war with streets in Washington DC lined with soldiers and exhausted nurses?  What could she do to lift the sadness filling the Lincoln family's hearts? An accomplished artist and statesman found their way to common ground.


With a mind and heart focused on poetic expression, Margarita Engle pens a biography both captivating and factual.  She supplies us with exquisite imagery of the land and wildlife in Venezuela, the travels aboard the ship to the United States, a scene from the Civil War and the memorable event of playing for the Lincoln family.  A repetition of a descriptive phrase for the piano keys creates a flawless flow from one section of the story to the next portion.  Here are two passages from a three-passage page.

Without a new piano,
Teresa would have felt even more lonely,
but soon she discovered that wherever one is,
some people are friendly, drawn together
by songs.

Musicians came to her home,
playing along while they listened
to the dazzling notes
of her dancing hands.


The image seen on the front of the matching dust jacket and book case is a stunning portrait of Teresa's ability to part the darkness of war and death with her remarkable piano music.  The flowers and birds reflect not only the particular piece she is playing but her ability to bring the cheer and charm of her native land with her wherever she goes.  The scene on the front extends to the left edge of the jacket flap.  The dark cloud blooms for most of the back, parts for a small space and continues.  White tents for soldiers dot the hillside outside of a small community shown on the far-left bottom.

Certain elements of the front and back of the jacket and case are replicated on the opening and closing endpapers.  The first offers a countryside at war with a single tiny bird flying in the sky.  On the second a historical note occupies a large portion on the left, then Teresa's piano has sheets of music taking wing mixed in with flowers and a brightly colored bird. (This bird appears several times throughout the book.) The dark clouds are moving away on the right and on the left.

The illustrations for this book were rendered in mixed media (acrylic on wood board, using sticks and other tools to paint; watercolor; construction paper; pen; and ink), and then assembled digitally

by Rafael Lopez.  Apart from two full-page pictures, all the images are double-page visuals.  Each one not only depicts a specific moment but conveys strong emotions.  Color choices supply us with joy, fright, sadness, and worry.  We are wrapped in Teresa's world.

Details reflect place and historical context.  All the people are fully animated according to the scene.  These illustrations are guaranteed to invite discussions and further research.

One of my many, many favorite pictures is of the family fleeing their home in Venezuela.  It captures these moments with sincere clarity.  Dark clouds scallop across the top of two pages.  Rain beats down diagonally on the right, across the gutter and on a portion of the left.  On the hills on the left, buildings are on fire and smoking.  In the foreground barrels drift in the ocean on the left due to the storm.  On the right a schooner is trying to ride out the horrific weather.  Beneath the ship and filling the lower half of the right side is a portrait of Teresa.  Her head is bowed, and her eyes are closed.  It's a breathtaking representation.  We see a side of her face, as she is facing right.


This book, Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreno Played The Piano For President Lincoln written by Margarita Engle with illustrations by Rafael Lopez, is the kind of nonfiction sure to excite and encourage readers.  If one ten-year-old child can bring contentment to a grieving family with her music, think what you or I or everyone else can do with our combined talents.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Margarita Engle and Rafael Lopez and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their websites.  Margarita Engle has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  Rafael Lopez has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.


Please be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the other titles selected this week by participants in the 2019 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.