A picture book for ages 3–7
The Beginning of Dance
Since the first mankind
by A.A. Glover
Long, long ago, before the snow, a little girl named Gina discovered something wonderful: music!
Meet Gina, the very first dancer
Little Gina lives in a cave beside a misty waterfall, where owls hoot, wolves howl, and woolly mammoths stomp. While her parents hunt for food, Gina listens closely to the world around her, and she starts to make sounds of her own.
She blows into a seashell. She plays a flute made of bone. She shakes a rattle, swings a roaring bullroarer, and bangs on a hollow log. Soon Papa Earl is playing, Mother Linda is clapping and singing, and Gina is dancing and dancing!
A story to read aloud
Rhythmic, sing-song text that’s fun to say together at bedtime.
A trip to the Stone Age
Caves, waterfalls, campfires and a big, friendly woolly mammoth.
Real music history
Meet real instruments from long ago, like bone flutes over 40,000 years old!
Peek inside the cave
Here are a few pages from Gina’s story.
Cave music!
Gina’s instruments are based on real ones people made long, long ago. Which one would you play?
Bone flute
Some of the oldest instruments ever found are flutes carved from bird bones, made more than 40,000 years ago.
Gourd rattle
A dried gourd filled with seeds or pebbles makes a shaking, swishing sound.
Bullroarer
A flat piece of wood or bone tied to a cord. Swing it in a circle and it hums and roars!
Seashell horn
Blowing into a large shell, like a conch, makes a deep, booming call.
Log drum
Tapping a hollow log with sticks or stones makes rhythms you can dance to.
Bring Gina home
A wonderful bedtime story and a sweet gift for dance recitals, birthdays, and little music lovers.
About the author
A.A. Glover, known to family and friends as Alex, lives in Miami, Florida. He is a proud father of five children, and he and his wife, Marlene, have been married for 18 years.