Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring

1. Author: Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
2. Title: Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring
3. Illustrator: Brian Floca
4. Genre: Non-fiction; picture book
5. Subgenre: Ballet/Play
6. Theme: Every artform can work together against all odds and create something beautiful.
7. Primary Characters: Martha Graham, Isamu Noguchi, Aaron Copeland
8. Secondary Characters: Other dancers and instrumentalists.
9. Award/Date: Orbis Pictus/2010
10. Publisher: Roaring Book Press
11. Summary: This story simply follows the journey of Graham, Noguchi, and Copeland in creating the play/musical "Making Appalachian Spring." It discusses how they meet, how they decide to create the musical, and how the fall and rise to success.
12. How Used: This story shows the importance of art. Sadly, artistic programs are being eliminated more and more because of lack of funds. Many schools consider it less important than others, which I believe is false. For students a teacher may have that feel like they want to pursue the arts, this book could help serve as inspiration.