The Sandy Bottom Orchestra

by Garrison Keillor and Jenny Lind Nilsson

Book Overview

Beloved author and radio host Garrison Keillor now brings his storytelling talents to children with The Sandy Bottom Orchestra. Twelve-year-old Rachel has always known that her parents were a little... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0786801735
• ISBN13: 9780786801732
• Release Date: December 1996
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

One of my favourite books!

I first read this book about four or five years ago, when I was around eleven, and it's become one of those books that I can just go back to and re-read as many times as I want and never get tired of. OK, so it's not one of the deepest books ever written, but the style is easy, the plot simple and entertaining, and yet somehow it manages not to slip into cliche or become overly shallow.The books follows exclusively the character of Rachel Green, an early teen whose one solace from life and parents is classical music. Perhaps the reason that I found this book so enjoyable is that I am a big fan of this type of music myself (as you can see from my name!). The girl displays all the characteristics typical in an early teenager - paranoia about her appearance, desire for acceptance, the feeling that her parents are unbearable, etc. However, in the last case, she might well have a point.Her mother is a crusader for better education and artistic facilities in the town of Sandy Bottom, and forbids a TV in the house; instead there is a grand piano. Her father meanwhile conducts imaginary symphony orchestras in the den, and cries over recordings of classical music.As you can see, the characters in this book are, shall we say, unique, and even those characters which could be called "transitory" are invested with larger-than-life personality traits. (The foremost among these being Drew and his mother.)Mainly due to these characters there is a good deal of humour in the book. However, there are a lot of wry observations made by the authors on some aspects of life and love. Speaking of which, there is a touching romance between Rachel and a cellist thrown into the book, further making the character of Rachel even more real and vivid. The book's overlying theme is obviously music, which makes it a joy to read for someone who is interested in this, but you definitely do not have to be a music-lover to get a great deal of enjoyment out of this book.All in all, for something which appears on the face of it to be merely a "children's book" it is a very enjoyable and easy read for people of pretty nearly every age.

Just One Great Read for All Ages!

Simply could not resist trying the book after seeing the video. The reviewers are right---the book is even better than the excellent film.Some things are different --- the book has a Methodist church not Lutheran, and the book has a date with the two string players at a drive-in.What a wholesome book for youth and adults.

It's the best!

Rachel is a young girl who is talented at playing the violin. Her best friend is now playing softball and spends most of her time with her team. Rachel, an only child, thinks she is in a weird family. Besides having no school, she isn't looking forward to summer. Then, to her surprise, she is accepted to play in a professional orchestra. Despite her excitement, she feels major things could go wrong, especially when the conductor quit.I recommend this book to anyone, especially those interested in music. It shows that things can turn around and prevail, even if you don't think it will.

I love this book!!!

I really liked The Sandy Bottom Orchestra by Garrison Keillor and Jenny Lind Nilsson. I enjoyed this book for many reasons. The characters are well developed and very realistic. They are just like ordinary people you might find in a small town. I also liked this book because it is about one of my favorite things- music. Anyone who plays an instrument-strings especially- will love this book. I liked this book because, for the most part, I would love to have a summer like Rachel's. I think it would be really fun to play in a professional orchestra.The best part of The Sandy Bottom Orchestra is when Rachel is at the orchestra rehearsals. She meets a lot of new people, and most of them are very wierd and funny. There is a man with hair like a birdcage, and Rachel's stand partner comes to the first rehearsal wearing a sweatshirt that says NEVER MESS WITH MOMMA and carrying a pink and turquoise striped purse. The rehearsals are the best part because it's there that the plot develops the most.The setting and the characters were the most vivid elements of The Sandy Bottom Orchestra. The authors describe the setting so well that you can almost imagine a sleepy little town like Sandy Bottom. What makes this a really good book is the characters. They are vivid and strong and really draw you into the story. Rachel's mother is civil-minded and demanding, while her father is shy, yet successful, and loves classical music. Each is rather quirky and poor Rachel is afraid she will grow up to be like them.