Needing a cheer up post-Christmas? Perhaps a sing-a-long book will help! “Hook Line & Singer : 125 songs to Sing Out Loud” by Cerys Matthews landed on my desk this week and just flicking through it brought a smile to my face.
Old favourites such as “You Are My Sunshine” and “Let’s Go Fly a Kite” brought back childhood memories but this book does more than this! There are, of course, nursery rhymes and lullabies but there are also tunes from around the world in multiple languages. The lyrics and musical arrangements are printed clearly and simply. The real highlight though, is the history of the songs and personal stories of the author relating to them. Each song has been carefully selected and has real meaning for her.
There is something lovely about the fact that people have been singing, dancing to and generally enjoying these songs for many generations. Recent surveys have shown that one in four parents do not remember whole nursery rhymes. Hopefully, books like this will help to revive the tradition of singing with your family and keep these songs alive.
You can find further details of Hook, Line & Singer on our main catalogue.