Playing at the Border

By Joanna Ho, Teresa Martinez (illustrator),

Book cover of Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma

Book description

The New York Times bestselling author of Eyes That Kiss in the Corners, Joanna Ho, delivers a poignant picture book biography about the musician Yo-Yo Ma, immigration, and using music to build bridges.

Winner of the Ezra Jack Keats Award Honor * Featured in Book Riot's Must Read September 2021…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Playing at the Border as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Yo-Yo Ma has always been such a role model and inspiration for me. I passionately believe that music is a unifying force, bridging differences. This picture book provides a lens into Yo-Yo Ma’s legacy, passion, and heart in a poetic and illustrative manner. I read this book to a kindergarten class and they were drawn into the story and even requested to listen and watch some of his performances.

From Kali's list on to introduce kids to music.

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