Malcom Kid and the Perfect Song

Paramore, Austin; Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (letterer), and Sarah Bollinger (illustrator). Malcom Kid and the Perfect Song. 2023. 208p. ISBN 9781637152232. Available as a graphic novel on the library shelves.

Malcolm loves music, and he is pretty good at it. His father, however, sees Malcom's choice of a career to be wrong, and he would prefer his son do something else, anything else. Plus with the death of his older brother, Malcolm has to be the oldest brother to his younger sibling. Malcom is poor, and even the subway robber takes pity on him, earning him the unflattering title of "2 Poor to Rob." When his friend accidentally destroys his portable keyboard, Malcolm is crushed. What will he do without a musical instrument? 

January was Malcolm's best friend before she moved away. Now that she's back, she's dating the friend that destroyed his keyboard, and she feels partly responsible for that because he was chasing her. So she reconnects with Malcolm, and she offers to replace his keyboard. She's located a pawnshop a few blocks away, so Malcolm and her visit the place. The man offers to sell him a wonderful LK-2000, but at a price that does not include money. January immediately accepts, though Malcolm has misgivings.

That night, Malcolm falls into a dream that feels very real. An older musician sits at a piano, looking for the perfect song. Malcolm awakes to find this was not a dream. The keyboard is actually haunted. Malcolm unloads his keyboard to January, who has the same dream the following night. Unlike Malcolm, however, she talks with the musician, and learns that his name is Midnight, and he was a famous jazz artist in their town. He is stuck here, until he completes the perfect song. January promises that Malcolm will return, and will help him complete his song. The old man is thrilled.

Angry, Malcolm reluctantly agree to help Midnight. As he and January begin to look for clues as to where the perfect song would be, they learn details about themselves and about Malcolm's family that shines a light on secrets that were long buried, and reveals the power that music has on his life.