Citation:  Beethoven Lives Upstairs by Barbara Nichol and Scott Cameron, ill.  New York: Orchard Books, 1993.

ISBN: 9780531068281

Annotation: Christoph writes his uncle a series of letters describing a strange neighbor that has rented his family’s upstairs apartment. Ludwig van Beethoven is the neighbor who creates beautiful music by writing on the walls, cutting the legs off his piano, and pouring water on his head.

Media: Oil paintings.   Cameron’s influences are N.C. Wyeth and Frederic Remington.

Personal Rating: 5Q/5P

Curricular Connections:  A great tool for a music class for teaching students about the life and music of Beethoven.  It is a fictional account that draws on Beethoven’s real life.  It is also a nice book for an English class to teach students letter writing since that is the format of the book. There is a CD that goes with the book as well, so students can listen to the music of Beethoven.

Grade Level or Age Range: Grades 5-High School

By: Joanne Maher July 29th, 2009