Children's Books on Schubert
| Author: | John Bankston | Title: | The Life and Times of Franz Peter Schubert |
| Desc: | Mitchell Lane, Bear,
Delaware, USA, 2004. ISBN 1-58415-177-3. 48pp, illustrated. Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Short biography, aimed at older children. Fairly superficial, though it does have a short 'greatest hits' works list, chronology and timeline of contemporary events. | ||
| Author: | Kitty Barne | Title: | Introducing Schubert |
| Desc: | Dent, London, 1957. 69pp,
illustrated. Hilmar # 123a |
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| Notes: | A sort of fifties version of A day with Franz Schubert, though not as bad, and obviously written for children. Full of inaccuracies, and poor drawings. It looks just like a Ladybird book (did you know there is a Schubert Ladybird book ?), but is quite difficult to track down, and when copies are offered, they tend to be fairly expensive. | ||
| Author: | Paul du Bouchet and Charlotte Voake | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Errato / Gallimard
Jeuness, Paris, 1999. (In French) Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Short biography, from the Découverte des Musiciens series, aimed at 6-10 year old children. With nice pictures, and an audio CD with a reading of the book interspersed with snippets from his works. | ||
| Author: | F Suárez Bravo | Title: | Schubert |
| Desc: | Miralles, Barcelona, n.d.
[c1905]. 16pp, illustrated. (In Spanish) Not in Kahl, not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Short biography, probably intended for children. Part of the Biblioteca Miralles series | ||
| Author: | Bratton, John L (Ed) | Title: | Schubert A memory Book |
| Desc: | Music and Youth, New
York, 1928. 23pp, plus a similar number of pages of illustrations. Not in Kahl, not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | A 'memory book' produced for the death centenary, and intended for older children. Has a 28 page biography, and shorter essays : 'A pen picture of Schubert' and 'How Schubert worked'. Several pictures, including one from the Vienna Sängerbundesfest of that year. | ||
| Author: | Lottie Ellsworth Coit and Ruth Bampton | Title: | The Child Schubert |
| Desc: | Presser, Philadelphia.
n.d. 20pp, illustrations, musical examples. Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Story, music and directions for playlet. | ||
| Author: | James Francis Cooke | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Presser, Philadelphia;
1928. 15pp, illustrated, plus adverts Kahl # 2074 |
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| Notes: | Short childrens biography by the Editor of 'The Etude'. Riddled with errors, but a nice period piece. | ||
| Author: | Kurt David | Title: | Der Spielmann vom Himmelpfortgrund |
| Desc: | Kinderbuchverlag, Berlin.
n.d. [1968??]. 178pp, illustrated. (In German) Hilmar # 658 |
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| Notes: | Short biographical novel about Schubert, intended for older children. | ||
| Author: | Dina di Nemo | Title: | The Four Seasons of Vienna |
| Desc: | Field-Doubleday, New
York, 1945. 75pp, 4 illustrations. Hilmar # 768a |
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| Notes: | Described as 'for musical children', this book gives very short biographies of Mozart (spring), J. Strauss Jr (summer), Schubert (autumn) and Beethoven (winter). As biographies goes, the one of Schubert is about the worst I've ever seen - you get the impression the author read a few books, took no notes, and a few weeks later wrote down what she could remember. My copy is signed by the author - if I'd written it I would have remained annonymous. | ||
| Author: | Brother Ernest, CSC | Title: | A Story of Schubert |
| Desc: | Dujarie Press, Notre
Dame; 1961. not paginated (about 23pp), illustrated (horribly). Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | A children's book with a strongly Catholic bent, and huge innacuracies. A serious challenger to Whitaker-Wilson as the worst book ever written about Schubert, though fortunately very hard to find. Many rediculous and unnecessary factual errors, caused by embroidery of the facts, a pitiful lack of research, or an assumption that it doesn't matter, because the book is just for children. Closes with blatant (and untruthful) Catholic propaganda. Truly awful. | ||
| Author: | Madeleine Goss | Title: | Unfinished Symphony - The story of Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Holt, New York, 1941.
308pp including chronology, index. Illustrated. Hilmar # 1326a |
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| Notes: | A book written for older children, similar to Merry Friends. A strange mixture of quotes, accurate comments, old wives tales and the excessses of a fertile imagination. My youngest daughter thinks it's wonderful. Reprinted a number of times, the second edition (1945) is 330pp with revised appendices. | ||
| Author: | A(nton) Herget | Title: | Der Liederfürst Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Haase, Leipzig, Vienna,
Prague, 1915. 36pp, illustrated. (In German) Not in Kahl, Hilmar # 1531 |
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| Notes: | Short pictorial biography, perhaps intended for older children. 8 very nice pictures by Grete Brzezowsky. | ||
| Author: | Rotraut Hinderks-Kutscher | Title: | Franzl aus dem Himmelpfortgrund |
| Desc: | Franckh'sche
Verlagshandlung, Stuttgart, 1955. 174pp, illustrated, with music
examples. (in German) Hilmar # 1661 |
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| Notes: | Childrens fictional biography for the whole of Schubert's life. | ||
| Author: | A(dolf) Kirchl and F(ranz) Wacik | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Haase, Prague, 1915. 12
large pages, with illustrations. (in German) Kahl # 1355 |
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| Notes: | Short illustrated childrens biography. The large format with large illustrations seems to make this a collectible children's book, and it is often rather expensive. | ||
| Author: | George Lucktenberg and David Carr Glover | Title: | Schubert 1797-1828 |
| Desc: | Belwin Mills, Melville,
NY, n.d. [c1960]. 8pp with illustrations and music. Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Very short biography with music, and a few questions to be answered. Presumably intended for children. | ||
| Author: | Kenneth and Valerie McLeish | Title: | Schubert |
| Desc: | Heinemann, London; 1979.
82pp, many illustrations. Hilmar # 2442 |
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| Notes: | A short biography, intended for older children, with sensible listening suggestions. Achieves its aims very well. | ||
| Author: | Gertrude Graves Martin | Title: | Thirty Minutes with Schubert |
| Desc: | Belwin, New York. 1940.
20pp, music. Not in Hilmar |
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| Notes: | Children's Schubert play, with music. | ||
| Author: | Brother Roy Nash | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Dujarie Press, Notre
Dame, 1967. 96pp, illustrated. Hilmar # 2555a |
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| Notes: | A children's biography, with large typeface and huge innacuracies: yet another author who can't be bothered to do research, or makes the story up as he goes along. Reprinted from the 1955 edition where it was called: Sing, My Poor Heart, Sing. | ||
| Author: | Ann Rachlin, illustrated by Susan Hellard | Title: | Famous Children - Schubert |
| Desc: | Gollancz, London; 1994.
ISBN 0-575-05772-6. 20pp. Illustrated. Hilmar # 2875 |
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| Notes: | Very short and simple biographical book with large pictures. In the Famous Children series, intended for young children, telling the story of Schubert's childhood. | ||
| Author: | Ferdinand Soeser | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Eckarthaus, Vienna. n.d.
[1922]. 66pp, illustrated, facsimile, small bibliography. Kahl # 1582 |
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| Notes: | Short illustrated paperback biography, in German, intended for older children. 1st edition from Konegen, Vienna. This edition has the new publisher stated on a label stuck on the front cover. | ||
| Author: | Thomas Tapper | Title: | Child's own book of Great Musicians: Schubert |
| Desc: | Theodore Presser,
Philadelphia; 1916. 14pp, illustrated. Not in Kahl. Hilmar # 3434a |
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| Notes: | So bad it's almost funny. Has awful pictures to cut out and stick in the appropriate place, and is very innacurate. Comes with a needle and thread to bind the book together, though this was replaced with staples in later print runs. Has a space for the child to write a brief biography: funnily enough most of the 'used' copies you see have the pictures stuck down, but no biography written! An interesting period piece. There is a detailed review in the SIUK bibliography articles. There is an revised English edition with the worst of the Americanisms removed. | ||
| Author: | Thomas Tapper & Gertrude Azulay | Title: | Youth's own book of Great Composers: Schubert |
| Desc: | Boosey & Co, London;
1930. 14pp, illustrated. Hilmar # 3434b |
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| Notes: | UK edition of Child's own book of Great Musicians: Schubert, with some of the worst Americanisms removed. There is a detailed review on another page. | ||
| Author: | Wendy Thompson | Title: | Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | Viking, London, New York,
etc., 1991. 48pp, music examples, illustrations. Hilmar 3464. |
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| Notes: | A part of the "Composer's World" series. A very short, but fairly accurate biography, lavishly illustrated. Perhaps modelled on Reed's book in the Great Composer's series, but with better pictures! Aimed at older children. Very nicely produced. | ||
| Author: | Renee Tramond | Title: | Schubert |
| Desc: | Editions et Imprimieries
du Sud-Est, Lyon, 1960. 88pp, illustrated. Works summary, small
bibliography, small discography. (in French) Hilmar # 3480a |
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| Notes: | Short biography of Schubert, intended for older children, in French. | ||
| Author: | Rudolph Tschierpe | Title: | Franz Schubert für die Mittelstufe ausgewählt |
| Desc: | Diesterweg, Frankfurt am
Main, 1925. 32pp, with music examples. (In German) Kahl # 1762 |
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| Notes: | Small school book on Schubert. Has sections on friends, Schubert and Beethoven and Goethe, Lieder, etc. | ||
| Author: | Anton Weiß | Title: | Franz Schubert - Eine Festgabe für Schule und Haus |
| Desc: | Deutscher, Verlag für
Jugend und Volk, Vienna, 1928. 137pp, plus 24pp with 14 songs.
Frontispiece, many illustrations. (In German) Kahl # 3056 |
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| Notes: | A centenary hotchpodge, part biography, part bits and pieces (14 songs, Schubert poetry, Viennese Schubert sites, the full text of Schubert's Father's list of births and deaths, and so on). Oodles of pictures. A lovely little period piece. Try to get the hardback: the paperback copies are rather fragile. | ||
| Author: | Opal Wheeler and Sybil Deucher | Title: | Franz Schubert and his Merry Friends |
| Desc: | EP Dutton, 1939, New
York.124pp, illustrated. Hilmar # 3698 |
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| Notes: | A children's book on Schubert's life, which takes us through to the end of his life, but doesn't kill him off! Lots of pseudo accurate pictures and musical quotes, but many inaccuracies. Many, many reprints. Also appears translated into German, and several other languages. There is a detailed review on another page. | ||
| Author: | Opal Wheeler and Sybil Deucher | Title: | Curtain Calls for Franz Schubert |
| Desc: | EP Dutton, 1941, New
York. 102pp. Musical examples and illustrations. Hilmar # 3697a |
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| Notes: | A Schubert play for young children, with music to be played during the play. A companion piece to Merry Friends. There is a detailed review on another page. | ||
| Author: | Peggy Woodford | Title: | Schubert |
| Desc: | J Garnet Miller, London,
1969. 95pp, plus bibliography, illustrated. Hilmar # 3770. |
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| Notes: | A straightforward biography for older children, from the Composers and their Times series. | ||
| Author: | Ian Woodward | Title: | Ladybird: Lives of the Great Composers, Book 2 |
| Desc: | Wills & Hepworth,
Loughborough, 1969. 53pp, illustrated. Hilmar # 3772. |
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| Notes: | Short illustrated biographies of Handel, Haydn and Schubert, intended for children. Most British children of my generation were 'brought up' on Ladybird books: small, fairly cheap, books with hard covers on just about any subject you can think of. You may not have seen it when you were young, but there was indeed a Schubert Ladybird book ! | ||