Twelve-year-old Rosie is a musical prodigy whose synesthesia allows her to see music in colors.
Her mom has always pushed her to become a concert violinist, but this summer Rosie refuses to play, wanting a "normal" life. Forced to spend the summer with her grandparents, Rosie is excited to meet another girl her age hanging out on their property. The girl is familiar, and Rosie quickly pieces it together: somehow, this girl is her mother, when her mother was twelve.
With help from this glitch in time―plus her grandparents, an improv group, and a new instrument―Rosie comes to understand her mother, herself, and her love of music in new ways.
Praise for The Color of Sound
"The Color of Sound is a valentine to families everywhere. Isler explores multiple intergenerational relationships lovingly and honestly, while keeping a gifted and vulnerable girl firmly at the center. It's hard to imagine a book that I would want both my parents and my children to read, and yet, here is one."
— John Cho, New York Times bestselling author of Troublemaker
"A well-crafted, heartfelt, and affecting exploration of giftedness and the power of music to connect generations. Rosie's journey, as she struggles with her special talent and with how it defines her as both a family member and a friend, is one that will resonate deeply with many readers."
— Barbara Dee, author of Maybe He Just Likes You and Unstuck
"Rosie sees sounds as colors, and author Emily Barth Isler brings her story and characters to life with just as much vibrancy. This beautiful, intergenerational coming-of-age story about families, secrets, and self-discovery will stay with you long after you finish reading it."
— Gail Lerner, author of The Big Dreams of Small Creatures
"A deeply resonant story of finding your own song through the noise of everyone else's expectations... This vivid and compassionate novel leaves the reader contemplating their own place in the world, in their family, and amidst the (violin) strings that connect us
— Jimmy Matejek-Morris, author of My Ex-Imaginary Friend and Forsooth
"This bright, brilliant symphony of a story will play on in your head long after you've turned the last page... Rosie's struggle with her family's expectations and its long history of trauma is deeply affecting and moving. I loved every beautiful, colorful, musical word."
— Sally J. Pla, author of The Someday Birds
— "Music is vibrant color . . . dark history . . . and muted truth. This tale of connection, family, and generational secrets will tug on your heart as you root for Rosie to find her song and herself. A beautiful book of hope and acceptance."
Elly Swartz, author of Dear Student
Starred Review, Publishers Weekly, December 11, 2023