JCPL Teens

JUNE 8, 2011

Four Seasons by Jane Breskin Zalben

Four Seasons is a remarkable gem among music-themed young adult novels. Zalben delves deep into the heart and mind of a young music student, Ally, who studies piano at The Juilliard School in New York City. The novel follows Ally for one year through a heartwrenching journey of self-discovery, trials, and triumphs. Although unsophisticated in writing style, the author is able to offer powerful perspective into the lives, and hearts, of musicians. Zalben uses the themes of Vivaldi's poetry and music as an outline for the story and the parallels work together perfectly.

As a musician, I embarked simultaneously on the journey that Ally takes to discover her true self through music. Of all the novels about music I have read, this is the only one that recognizes the dangers, along with the joys, that intensive musical study presents to students. Since reading this book, I have identified with the crises that Ally undergoes in the novel and have observed the same breakdowns among fellow music students. The questions Zalben explores in this novel are profound and entirely applicable to any music student. The novel is continually thought provoking, even after its completion, begging of its reader the questions that Ally faced in her life.

JCPL Teens

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