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''The Jazz Man'' is a children's book written by Mary Hays Weik and illustrated by her daughter Ann Grifalconi. The book was published by Atheneum Books in 1966 and received a Newbery Honor〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal#60s )〕 in 1967. A second edition was published in 1993 by Aladdin Books.''The Jazz Man'' has also been published in Germany and South Africa.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CH1000104325&v=2.1&u=cuny_laguardia&it=r&p=GLS&sw=w&asid=873555bf6171a8b27a979e4d0778a733 )〕 ==Plot summary== ''The Jazz Man'' is the story of a nine-year-old boy named Zeke, who lives on the top floor of a brownstone in Harlem with his parents. The story begins with Zeke remembering an old home he used to live in down South. He later explains how the five flights of stairs he usually walked up to get home made his "legs ache beat hot and fast when he first came to live there." Over time, he gets used to the stairs but the stairs still troubled his mother. Every night, when Zeke's mother came home from work, he would often hear her struggling to climb up the long flights of stairs. One of Zeke's legs is shorter than the other, and "the kids downstairs stared at his lame foot and made him feel hot and different." Due to this, Zeke skipped school most of the time and stayed upstairs in his apartment staring at windows across the courtyard. He becomes intrigued by an apartment with a window that is always closed. He watches this window for a while, contemplating who might be moving into the apartment. Eventually, a man with a piano moves in. Zeke calls him the Jazz Man. The Jazz Man plays all day and night. Zeke enjoys the music with his family. Through music, the Jazz Man helps Zeke's mother forget her tiredness and her inability to pay the rent. He also helps Zeke's father forget about his unemployment. Zeke watches as the Jazz Man jams with his friends, who play the saxophone, drums, and trumpet. As summer ends, Zeke's mother starts to get more and more irritated by the stairs. She argues with Zeke's father because of his recurrent unemployment. That night, Zeke's mother reads Zeke a bedtime story while crying. The next morning Zeke's mother leaves and doesn't return, forcing Zeke and his father to learn how to survive on their own. Soon, Zeke's father begins neglecting his duties at home and at times would stay out for many days without leaving Zeke any food to eat. Zeke becomes quieter and skinnier. He tells his neighbors that his mother left to visit her rich aunt, but everyone, including Zeke, knows that this is a lie. After a while, Zeke realizes he hasn't heard from the Jazz Man for some time and looks across the courtyard, only to see that the Jazz Man has left the apartment. Zeke leaves his building one morning and walks across the street. He finds the Jazz Man playing with his friends in a large party. Confused, Zeke pinches himself and wakes up to his father's voice. Zeke is with his mother and father listening to the Jazz Man from their window. Zeke realizes that he had been dreaming the entire time. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Jazz Man」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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