100 books like The Time of Our Singing

By Richard Powers,

Here are 100 books that The Time of Our Singing fans have personally recommended if you like The Time of Our Singing. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration

Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani Author Of The Cities We Need: Essential Stories of Everyday Places

From my list on struggles through the stories of real people.

Why am I passionate about this?

Growing up in New York, the child of New Yorkers, every corner was replete with memories and histories that taught me life values. Walking through these meaningful places, I learned that the multiplicity of people’s stories and struggles to make space for themselves were what made the city and enriched everyone’s lives. The books here echo the essential politics and personal connections of those stories, and all have been deeply meaningful to me. Now, with my firm Buscada, and in my writing and art practice, I explore the way people’s stories of belonging and community, resistance and rebuilding from cities around the globe help us understand our shared humanity.

Gabrielle's book list on struggles through the stories of real people

Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani Why did Gabrielle love this book?

It’s hard to know quite where to begin with this book–there is so much to love.

This book tells the story of the Great Migration of African American people out of the South across the United States to Chicago, New York, California, and beyond; it transforms and fills in a crucial part of American history that every American should know to understand our present day. But for me, what I love most starts with the way Isabel Wilkerson cares for people’s stories. 

Wilkerson tells this decades-long, sweeping, under-told story through individual stories that are so detailed and compelling, so thoroughly contextualized with historical research, that I was completely enmeshed in these people’s lives, their struggles, their loves, and their feelings. I cared. In the years since I read it, stories from the book often come to my mind, teaching and guiding me like the words of a beloved relative. 

By Isabel Wilkerson,

Why should I read it?

20 authors picked The Warmth of Other Suns as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In this beautifully written masterwork, the Pulitzer Prize–winnner and bestselling author of Caste chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life.

From 1915 to 1970, this exodus of almost six million people changed the face of America. Wilkerson compares this epic migration to the migrations of other peoples in history. She interviewed more than a thousand people, and gained access to new data and official…


Book cover of Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement

Julie Kabat Author Of Love Letter from Pig: My Brother's Story of Freedom Summer

From my list on building compassion around issues of race.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a child, it was shocking to observe prejudice and bullying. I wanted with all my being to resist, to make things right. I trust that in this I am not alone. Juxtaposed, I remember instances of compassion and still feel grateful. My oldest brother Luke helped me think deeply about these kinds of events. In response, I dedicated myself to a career in music and arts in education. I felt blessed to bring students from different cultures together to build creativity, understanding, and community. I wanted to empower young people to voice their feelings and thoughts in the poetry, stories, and plays they wrote, set to music, and performed. 

Julie's book list on building compassion around issues of race

Julie Kabat Why did Julie love this book?

How could I or anyone, except a bigot, not love John Lewis for his towering integrity, bravery, and authenticity? His commitment to the beloved community: “Good trouble,” he declared, calling himself and his generation to action, to protest. Non-violent resistance was his touchstone––learning how to love in the face of hate.

His sweeping memoir provides an inside, close-up view of the Civil Rights Movement at its height in the 60s. As executive director of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), he held fast to his ideals, grappling with the most difficult of questions and obstacles. The beautiful story from his childhood in Alabama, during a storm threatening to upend his aunt’s house, explains the title, Walking with the Wind. I hope to keep walking on the path he set. 

By John Lewis, Michael D'Orso,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Walking with the Wind as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An award-winning national bestseller, Walking with the Wind is one of our most important records of the American Civil Rights Movement. Told by John Lewis, who Cornel West calls a “national treasure,” this is a gripping first-hand account of the fight for civil rights and the courage it takes to change a nation.

In 1957, a teenaged boy named John Lewis left a cotton farm in Alabama for Nashville, the epicenter of the struggle for civil rights in America. Lewis’s adherence to nonviolence guided that critical time and established him as one of the movement’s most charismatic and courageous leaders.…


Book cover of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together

Julie Kabat Author Of Love Letter from Pig: My Brother's Story of Freedom Summer

From my list on building compassion around issues of race.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a child, it was shocking to observe prejudice and bullying. I wanted with all my being to resist, to make things right. I trust that in this I am not alone. Juxtaposed, I remember instances of compassion and still feel grateful. My oldest brother Luke helped me think deeply about these kinds of events. In response, I dedicated myself to a career in music and arts in education. I felt blessed to bring students from different cultures together to build creativity, understanding, and community. I wanted to empower young people to voice their feelings and thoughts in the poetry, stories, and plays they wrote, set to music, and performed. 

Julie's book list on building compassion around issues of race

Julie Kabat Why did Julie love this book?

What are the true costs of racism and the benefits of breaking out of its cage? I deeply admire the way Heather McGhee mines evidence and shows how the construction of race has worked against the interests of everyone, regardless of race. Then, she flips the script and shows compelling evidence for all the ways that we as a people benefit by working together. She calls it the ‘Solidarity Dividend,’ and I love this term she has coined.

She gives living examples of how everyone benefits when we work together to move beyond the zero-sum game, whether in the fields of healthcare, education, housing, employment, voting rights, the safety net, or more. Data-driven but in a refreshing style, McGhee’s book is inspiring!

By Heather McGhee,

Why should I read it?

9 authors picked The Sum of Us as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD • One of today’s most insightful and influential thinkers offers a powerful exploration of inequality and the lesson that generations of Americans have failed to learn: Racism has a cost for everyone—not just for people of color.

WINNER OF THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD • ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Time, The Washington Post, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Ms. magazine, BookRiot, Library Journal

“This is the book I’ve been waiting for.”—Ibram X. Kendi, #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist

Look for…


No, You're Crazy

By Jeff Beamish,

Book cover of No, You're Crazy

Jeff Beamish Author Of No, You're Crazy

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Jeff's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

When sixteen-year-old Ashlee Sutton's home life falls apart, she is beset by a rare mental illness that makes her believe she's clairvoyant. While most people scoff at her, she begins demonstrating an uncanny knack for sometimes predicting the future, using what could either be pure luck or something more remarkable.

When she helps her drug-addicted father win enough casino cash to accidentally overdose, she becomes the target of violent people determined to exploit her, and she goes on the run. Ashlee reaches out to a distant relative, traumatized war journalist Mike Baker. Soon, at least in Ashlee's eyes, they are…

No, You're Crazy

By Jeff Beamish,

What is this book about?

When sixteen-year-old Ashlee Sutton's home life falls apart, she is beset by a rare mental illness that makes her believe she's clairvoyant. While most people scoff at her, she begins demonstrating an uncanny knack for sometimes predicting the future, using what could either be pure luck or something more remarkable. And when she helps her drug-addict father win enough casino cash to accidentally overdose, she becomes the target of violent people determined to exploit her, and she goes on the run. Ashlee reaches out to a distant relative, traumatized war journalist Mike Baker. Soon, at least in Ashlee's eyes, they…


Book cover of The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store

Julie Kabat Author Of Love Letter from Pig: My Brother's Story of Freedom Summer

From my list on building compassion around issues of race.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a child, it was shocking to observe prejudice and bullying. I wanted with all my being to resist, to make things right. I trust that in this I am not alone. Juxtaposed, I remember instances of compassion and still feel grateful. My oldest brother Luke helped me think deeply about these kinds of events. In response, I dedicated myself to a career in music and arts in education. I felt blessed to bring students from different cultures together to build creativity, understanding, and community. I wanted to empower young people to voice their feelings and thoughts in the poetry, stories, and plays they wrote, set to music, and performed. 

Julie's book list on building compassion around issues of race

Julie Kabat Why did Julie love this book?

I found McBride’s novel a wild ride, full of humor, unexpected twists, and a dazzling array of quirky characters. Set in Chicken Hill, a neighborhood on the proverbial “other side of the tracks,” the residents––Blacks, Jews, Italians, the disabled, and other assorted folks––come to depend on each other. I admire how he treats all, except the bigots, with deep respect and love, notwithstanding their failings or moral flaws. After all, life is complicated.

McBride captures each of their individual dialects and rhythms of speech. So many characters! But every single one turns out to be necessary, because in the end it is the community they co-create that matters. Community, compassion, bonds across race, ethnicity, ability, and age: I believe this book carries an essential message for our time.

By James McBride,

Why should I read it?

19 authors picked The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“A murder mystery locked inside a Great American Novel . . . Charming, smart, heart-blistering, and heart-healing.” —Danez Smith, The New York Times Book Review

“We all need—we all deserve—this vibrant, love-affirming novel that bounds over any difference that claims to separate us.” —Ron Charles, The Washington Post

From James McBride, author of the bestselling Oprah’s Book Club pick Deacon King Kong and the National Book Award–winning The Good Lord Bird, a novel about small-town secrets and the people who keep them

In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for…


Book cover of When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson

Diane Stanley Author Of Ada Lovelace, Poet of Science: The First Computer Programmer

From my list on picture book biographies.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have always loved history—not so much the politics, the kings and wars and battles, but the remarkable, often eccentric people who stood out in the age in which they lived. When I started writing books for children, I fell naturally into writing biographies. Each book I’ve written has been an adventure, with research that took me into vanished worlds and introduced me to remarkable people, from Shakespeare and Joan of Arc to Peter the Great, Michelangelo, Cleopatra, and Leonardo da Vinci. I got to read their letters, learn little personal details about their lives, and live vicariously in their worlds. It’s been my life’s joyful work, and I appreciate the brilliant work of other authors who write biography too.

Diane's book list on picture book biographies

Diane Stanley Why did Diane love this book?

This is such a gorgeous book! Beautifully told by Pam Muñoz Ryan, this is the story of Marian Anderson, a little girl with a beautiful voice who battled racial prejudice in the pre-Civil Rights era to become one of America’s greatest singers. Brian Selznick’s illustrations are exquisite, done in soft sepia tones to give a feel for the period. And the book’s unique format will delight readers of any age. This is a book that inspires, touching hearts, and teaching young readers what courage, perseverance, and generosity can accomplish.

By Pam Muñoz Ryan, Brian Selznick (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked When Marian Sang as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 7, 8, 9, and 10.

What is this book about?

A harmonious introduction to one of our country's most important singers and role models--as envisioned by Newbery Honoree Pam Muñoz Ryan and Caldecott Medalist Brian Selznick.

Marian Anderson is best known for her historic concert at the Lincoln Memorial in 1939, which drew an integrated crowd of 75,000 people in pre-Civil Rights America. While this momentous event showcased the uniqueness of her voice, the strength of her character, and the struggles of the times in which she lived, it is only part of her story. Like the operatic arias Marian would come to sing, Ryan's text is as moving as…


Book cover of Dancing on My Grave

Adin Dalton Author Of Fate

From my list on the artistry of ballet and classical music.

Why am I passionate about this?

P. I. Tchaikovsky is a world-famous composer but few people know anything about him. Much of his life was hidden by the Soviet Union due to his homosexuality. As information finally came to light, the mystery of his death in 1893 became an obsession for me. The truth of it lies beyond the rumors of suicide or cholera, as particular circumstances exposed in my novel clearly show. I am a ballet historian and the writing of Fate was an eight-year endeavor. Readers of Fate can now be the proverbial fly on the wall while Tchaikovsky lives his life and creates his major works.

Adin's book list on the artistry of ballet and classical music

Adin Dalton Why did Adin love this book?

I found that this sometimes funny but always emotional and moving account of Ms. Kirkland's life as a ballerina in New York City to be a real triumph. She brings to the pages an honesty that is rarely seen, even in autobiographies. From the illegal drug scene that nearly killed her to the everyday trials of an immensely talented dancer caught between two worlds, this is the stuff that nightmares are made of.

By Gelsey Kirkland,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Dancing on My Grave as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An American ballerina presents a story of the high-pressure world of dance which brought the dancer to a nightmare world of illness, drug addicition, and suicidal despair


Book cover of Listen to the Birds: An Introduction to Classical Music

Jonathan Peters Author Of Meet the Orchestra: A Guide to the Instruments of the Orchestra Through Star Constellations and Greek Myths

From my list on children’s books on classical music.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am an award-winning composer, author, and educator. Since 1990 I have had the privilege of teaching others about music through my concerts, children’s books, academic books, lessons, and online courses. 

Jonathan's book list on children’s books on classical music

Jonathan Peters Why did Jonathan love this book?

Listen to the Birds is part of the series An Introduction to Classical Music. Author Ana Gerhard chooses a different theme for each book and then puts together a collection of songs by various composers which is related to that theme. What a great idea! The included CD only gives you excerpts from the pieces, but that is probably because it is meant as an “intro” to classical music for a younger audience with a shorter attention span. I would recommend despite this downside, since further listening can always be done separately from the book if the readers are interested to hear more.

By Ana Gerhard, Cecilia Varela (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Listen to the Birds as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 7, 8, and 9.

What is this book about?

Winner of:

Parents' Choice Gold Award

Throughout history birds have caught the imagination of composers and inspired their creativity, and this selection of works by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, and others introduces children to classical music through the discovery of the melodious similarities between notes produced by instruments such as the flute, the organ, and the harpsichord and the birds’ songs. In addition to lovely illustrations, the book features a glossary of musical terms, a short biography of each composer, and a brief description of each bird evoked or mentioned in the composition. The accompanying CD offers excerpts of 20 different…


Book cover of Schubert's Winter Journey: Anatomy of an Obsession

Yiannis Gabriel Author Of Music and Story: A Two-Part Invention

From my list on falling in love with classical music.

Why am I passionate about this?

Classical music has been one of the great passions of my life, ever since at the age of 6 my father introduced me to the magic of Chopin’s Polonaise héroïque, by improvising the story that the music was telling, creating a magical mosaic of notes and words. I then realized that music tells stories and that musical stories do not only offer pleasure, excitement, and consolation, but also act as sources of insight into the world we inhabit, in all its complexity and drama. I have since made classical music a regular part of my life, Bach, Mozart, Chopin, and Beethoven being intimate friends and acquaintances, not distant historical figures. 

Yiannis' book list on falling in love with classical music

Yiannis Gabriel Why did Yiannis love this book?

Ian Bostridge is one of the leading tenors of our time and maybe the leading interpreter of songs, a genre of classical music that reached its apex in the compositions of Franz Schubert, music’s gentle giant who died at the age of 31. Bostridge describes his book on Schubert's Winterreise, the greatest song cycle ever composed, as the 'anatomy of an obsession'. As one of the cycle's most distinguished interpreters, Bostridge has performed the cycle numerous times and knows it intimately. He also uses his knowledge as a historian to provide a probing and imaginative companion for those of us who can become fellow travellers on his obsession.

The book is beautifully written, containing an essay on each of the cycle's 24 songs—the song, so to speak, acting as the point of departure for a journey of its own. Some of these essays are historical in nature. They demonstrate…

By Ian Bostridge,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Schubert's Winter Journey as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An exploration of the world’s most famous and challenging song cycle, Schubert's Winter Journey (Winterreise), by a leading interpreter of the work, who teases out the themes—literary, historical, psychological—that weave through the twenty-four songs that make up this legendary masterpiece.

Completed in the last months of the young Schubert’s life, Winterreise has come to be considered the single greatest piece of music in the history of Lieder. Deceptively laconic—these twenty-four short poems set to music for voice and piano are performed uninterrupted in little more than an hour—it nonetheless has an emotional depth and power that no music of its…


Book cover of Canone Inverso

Gerald Elias Author Of Cloudy with a Chance of Murder: A Daniel Jacobus Mystery

From my list on mysteries in the world of classical music.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve spent a lifetime as a professional classical musician and a mystery reader. Starting with Hardy Boys adventures at the same time I started playing the violin, my intertwined love affairs with music and the mystery genre continue to this day. As a long-time member of major American symphony orchestras, I’ve heard and experienced so many stories about the dark corners of the classical music world that they could fill a library. It gives me endless pleasure to read other mystery authors’ take on this fascinating, semi-cloistered world and to share some of my own tales with the lay public in my Daniel Jacobus mystery series.

Gerald's book list on mysteries in the world of classical music

Gerald Elias Why did Gerald love this book?

Intense and intricate with complex human interactions subjected to the forces of history and destiny, Canone Inverso is both literary fiction and mystery. This gripping tale of evolving relationships centers around the field of classical music and a particular violin. With the setting in Germany, Austria, and Hungary during the turbulent 1930s and ’40s, a brilliant, working-class young violinist is secluded in a prison-like music conservatory with an aristocratic boy who befriends him. Gradually, their bond is severely tested. What is genius? What is friendship? What is the price paid for beauty and greatness? These are some of the issues we’re confronted with in this riveting novel.

By Paolo Maurensig,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Canone Inverso as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When a strangely carved violin appears at auction in London, one bidder is prepared to pay any price to have it in his possession again. Many years before, two boys were united in their lust for music; how they were ultimately divided is revealed as the story journeys to pre-Nazi Vienna.


Book cover of Allegro: A Musical Journey Through 11 Musical Masterpieces

Brooke Lapides Author Of Financial Fun from A-Z

From my list on fun and educational books for kids.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been fascinated with financial literacy for a long time. I have an MBA and have worked in banking and the mortgage industry for more than 15 years. I am passionate about helping people understand concepts and terms that, at times, are obfuscated. Now that I have a son of my own, I am constantly looking for books that expose him to a variety of topics, not just financial. I am always checking out library books for him that will educate him about the world around him. My list of books is curated to some of my favorite educational books that he and I both love!

Brooke's book list on fun and educational books for kids

Brooke Lapides Why did Brooke love this book?

This book is a little different than a typical children’s board book or picture book. It’s a hardcover book that plays 11 different snippets of classical music that coordinate with the story as it progresses.

This book was the first time my son was exposed to classical music, and it’s how we found out how much he loves it. He has had this book for about two years, and it’s still an absolute favorite!

By David W. Miles, Anita Barghigiani (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Allegro as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Classical music comes to life like never before in this magical journey through 11 timeless compositions. Meet Allegro, an ordinary boy who can't stand practicing the piano. Those black dots on the page drive him crazy―until the music itself whisks him away on a breathtaking journey. Each beautifully illustrated scene on Allegro's journey is accompanied by a famous classical theme that can be played with the press of a button. Hear Grieg's "Morning Mood" while meandering through a misty meadow, Dvorak's "New World Symphony" while exploring uncharted lands, Debussy's "Claire de Lune" while pondering a shimmering night sky, and 7…


Book cover of The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration
Book cover of Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement
Book cover of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together

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