Elvis: The Story of the Rock and Roll King

A beautifully-wrought portrayal of Elvis Presley's transition from impressionable child to musical icon. Each page evokes the life events that gave his music the soul that made him a star. The images are memorable in a way that makes it perfect for young minds. Five stars.

A wonderful picture book about Elvis! The art work is superb. The story is concise and factual. A must for Elvis fans young and old.

Summary: This picture book biography focuses on Elvis Presley’s early years, growing up in extreme poverty in the south. From a very young age, Elvis was drawn to music, and he was surrounded by a wide range of influences. Even though his town was segregated by race and class, the music of jazz, blues, and gospel was everywhere. When Elvis was 13, his family moved from Mississippi to Memphis, and he learned to play guitar. A few years later, he managed to get a recording session with Sun Records. It was turning into a disaster, when Elvis started singing “That’s All Right”, a Delta blues song he infused with country and gospel. That song became a hit, and Elvis Presley was on his way.Pros: Kids today may see Elvis Presley as something of a joke, and this story really humanizes him, portraying him sympathetically as a nervous kid who loved music.Cons: The story ends at the beginning of Elvis’s career, which may leave the reader wanting to know more.

We borrowed this book from the library, and sadly this story fell completely flat. The story seems to be all over the map, adding superfluous details and leaving them out completely at other times.The story starts with segregation issues in the 1930's; and although an important fact, it adds simply nothing of to the actual story of the "making of the Rock 'n Roll King."The recording studio paragraph is especially confusing, as Elvis makes a record, they like his voice, but don't need a singer. Elvis comes back every week to see if they need a singer, still nothing. Suddenly, they need a singer and call Elvis (we actually had to reread the paragraph several times as we simply couldn't find the story line anymore).The lines between relevant and irrelevant details get crossed, jumped, or just ignored so many times, a potentially good story fell apart and robbed the King of his crown.It felt like a wooden roller coaster, that whips you around, going fast, then coming to a grinding halt, tossing you left and right and in the end you're merely left with a sore back and aching teeth, wishing you never got on.A good story to tell, but needs some editing and needs to be adjusted for its audience of children under 10.