Olivia Forms a Band

That imaginative and willful little pig Olivia returns in this fourth picture-book chronicling her adventures, this time determined to create her own marching band, when her mother informs her that the fireworks they will be seeing that evening won't have musical accompaniment. When her family members don't prove as enthusiastic as she is at the idea of participating, our porcine heroine decides she will have to do it by herself. After all, as Olivia reminds her mother, she alone can sound like five people, so why not form a band...?

Like its predecessors, Olivia Forms a Band is a superb picture-book, one that pairs a pitch-perfect narrative about a feisty and creative young girl with lots of energy and not a lot of restraint, with show more absolutely hilarious illustrations that are as beautiful as they are entertaining. Ian Falconer is at the top of his form here, adeptly capturing the droll expressions on the faces of Olivia and her family in his charcoal and gouache artwork. A number of photographs - a rock band, a marching band, the Supreme Court! - are worked into the artwork, in the thought bubbles. Highly recommended to anyone who has read and enjoyed other stories about Olivia, as well as to anyone looking for stories about feisty young girls and their imaginary inner worlds. show less

In another wonderful addition to the "Olivia" arsenal, Falconer has developed a story about creativity and music through the sassy swine protagonist. Olivia and her family are going to watch fireworks, and Olivia inquires about the band. She then goes onto explain that there must be a band, so she takes it upon herself to be that band. Through clanging and honking, Olivia forms her one pig band, which she ultimately swaps for some bold red lipstick when her family leaves for the fireworks. Unlike some of the other Olivia books, I felt that "Olivia Forms a Band" was a very wholesome and real story. It didn't involve jetting off to Venice or saving a circus, moreover it was very reminiscent of my own ADHD fueled antics as a child. It was show more a great example of a fantasy because it put that real and simple story into an impossible reality of talking pigs, making it both relatable and entertaining for children. I could see myself using this in a classroom when talking about the 4th of July, or when teaching about music.
Media: Charcoal & Gouache show less

Olivia the porcine diva is dreaming big again. When her mother announces that the family is going to see fireworks that evening, Olivia insists that fireworks without a band is just not kosher. Recruiting her family is met with worried here-we-go-again looks, but Olivia is not deterred. My favorite line from Olivia comes after Olivia's mother tells her a band has to sound like more than one person: "This morning you told me I sounded like five people!" (Echoing similar refrains in our house.)

My daughter's favorite page was the one with the fireworks (['faɪəʃʊks] in her idiolect), which she still remembers from the 4th of July.

One thing that pleased me was to see Olivia being considerate of her siblings in piecing together her show more one-pig band (although she appears to snatch her father's suspenders without asking), giving them something they want in exchange for their toy musical instruments.

As with the other Olivia books, Falconer's palette is spare black-and-white, punctuated with splashes of red and blue. The expressions on his characters' faces are so masterful that they tell at least as much of the story as does the prose.

A couple quibbles I have are the ever-present baby bottle (with no adult nearby) and the non-sequitur final page with its depiction of what Olivia's dreaming (I suspect it was put there to give adults a chuckle as I can't imagine the vast majority of the book's target audience would recognize it - my daughter wanted to know who those people were), but overall I found it as charming as my girl did. show less

Olivia wants to be a one-girl band for the fireworks show she is attending with her family. She gathers up all sorts of instruments, steals her dad's suspenders (while he's wearing them!) and practices (sort of). When it comes time to go to the fireworks show, she changes her mind. That night, Olivia dreams of becoming a member of the Supreme Court.

Although only my second book in the series, I really think these books are adorable. Great to read for all ages and the illustrations are really well done!

Olivia and her family are going to watch fireworks on the 4th of July. She decides she needs to form a band to play during the fireworks. After a whole day of practicing she doesn't bring her band to watch the fireworks.
I love this book for students because this series is so funny and makes you feel good while you read it. This would be good for a unit containing American Independence or anything to do with 4th of July, or can be put with a fun music lesson or project.

Caldecott Honor winner Ian Falconer returns to his beloved muse Olivia in Olivia Forms a Band. In this book the reader finds Olivia’s family--which has expanded to add another baby brother, William--preparing to have a picnic and view some fireworks. Olivia is naturally excited, but when she discovers that there will not be a band to accompany the display, she decides to correct the problem. Initially she suggests that the family become a band, but when they balk at the idea, she decides to take on the task of providing musical entertainment alone. Her innovation is delightful and would doubtlessly make Dick Van Dyke’s character from Mary Poppins proud.
While Olivia is just as lovable as she was in Falconer’s previous titles, this show more book is not quite as successful as its predecessors. Falconer’s dedication to honestly portraying a child of Olivia’s age and all the forgetfulness and distractions to which they are prone is admirable, but in this book it makes for uneven storytelling. A diversion involving Olivia and her mother’s makeup disrupts the flow of the story and proves to be unnecessary to the tale as a whole. Fans of Olivia will be happy to add this to their collection regardless, and those fan’s parents will appreciate Falconer’s insight into the ins and outs of raising young children. show less

For the picnic and fireworks, Olivia thinks there should be a band, but no band will be there. So Olivia decides she will form a band. No one in the family is willing to join the band with her. What, oh what, is a young pig to do? But this is Olivia and Olivia is synonymous with Out-of-the-box creativity. A delightful solution.