We listen to a whole heck of a lot of music in our house, and much of it is either family music, Disney soundtracks, or music that falls in any of the pop/rock/hip hop categories.

So, to shake things up, we often make a switch to classical music on Sunday mornings. It’s the perfect accompaniment to a warm cup of coffee, reading the paper, and begging my daughter to please, for the love of all things, eat her vitamins.

And every time we go classical, I have the thought, “we need to listen to this more often.” Instead of wanting to bounce around the living room like rabbits on speed, my kids tend to gravitate towards coloring, reading, or puzzles while classical music is playing. The genre shifts the energy in our house to one that is a bit more calm. A bit more cerebrally stimulating. A bit more enchanted.

Now I have one more reason to crank up the classical music in our home.

Author Ana Gerhard, concert pianist and music educator, has written a new book with an accompanying CD, Simply Fantastic: An Introduction to Classical Music that is sure to fill your home with magic. It’s not just a book with a CD, it’s an experience.

This gorgeously illustrated book (centered on the fantastical world of fairies, witches, gnomes, elves, wizards and the like) covers the Big Hitters of classical music such as Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Verdi, among others.

Performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, La Scala Chorus and Orchestra, and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the 20 excerpts found in Simply Fantastic span over 300 years of music history.

For each piece of music, Gerhard has provided brief descriptions that detail what magical creature the piece is about (fairies and their traits, for instance), and summaries of the plots of the ballet, opera or orchestral piece the work comes from. Often, she also includes bits of trivia regarding the composer and the impetus for the piece’s creation.

It’s a great primer for young ones to the world of classical music, and for adults, as well! I felt so knowledgeable after reading this with my children and found new appreciation of classical favorites. The vocabulary Gerhard uses is basic enough to help young readers and listeners comprehend the complexities of the composition, but not so simple that it won’t appeal to older audience.

To add to the magic of the music’s topics and Gerhard’s writing, Claudia Legnazzi created lush, vibrant illustrations that add a rich layer to the entire experience.

And, do I even need to mention how amazing this collection of music is? The CD includes pieces of music that are widely familiar and identifiable, some less recognizable, as well as many compositions that most of us can hum to, but may not know it’s origin. Songs like “In the Hall of the Mountain King” by Edvard Grieg), for instance. Look! It’s not just a commercial soundtrack!

As a dancer, I was pleased to see excerpts from ballets famous and not-so-famous, such as “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, “Dance of Terror” from Manuel de Falla’s Love, the Magician and “The Infernal Dance of Ali Kashchei’s Subjects” from Stravnisky’s The Firebird.

Many of the songs are short in length, perfect for a young listeners attention span.  The book’s selection of music covers a wide musical range, from the sweet and tender (“Dance of the Blessed Spirits” by Christoph Willibald Gluck) to the melodic and joyful (“The Fairy-Queen” by Henry Purcell), to the mischievously perky or dissonant (“Witches Dance” by Niccolo Paganini or “Pucks’ Dance” by Claude Debussy), to the intensely dramatic (“The Hut on Fowl’s Legs” by Modest Mussorgsky or “Ride of the Valkyries” by Richard Wagner.) All of the selections display just how powerful a piece of music can be.

Gerhard saved the best for last, with an amazing listening guide at the end.  It’s perfect for folks like me that love listening to music, but aren’t sure how to discuss what they hear in musical terms. The guide sheds a warm and knowledgeable light on what you’re hearing. I would recommend listening first, reading the guide, then listening again for a deeper experience.

Simply Fantastic: An Introduction to Classical Music is a book and CD that should be a staple in any home to young children. It’s available in the United States on June 17th.

But you don’t have to wait until then! I’m so excited about this book and CD that I’m giving one to a lucky reader! If you’d like the chance to win this extraordinary book and CD, it’s as easy as entering the Rafflecopter widget below by 11:59pm on Friday, June 13.  Open to anyone 18 and over in the contiguous United States.

Good luck!