Turning children into violinists; Shinichi Suzuki: The Man and His Philosophy, by Evelyn Hermann. Athens, Ohio: Ability Development Associates. $22.50

When you hear a seven-year-old violinist confidently performing a grown-up composition, chances are the child is instructed by the Suzuki method. Shinichi Suzuki has won worldwide recognition for his teachings that all children can learn a musical instrument as easily as they learn to speak.

the author's approach to Part 1, a biography, is unwaveringly laudatory. Part 2 is a collection of short articles by Suzuki himself. Though rather haphazard and amateurish, the book appears to be the most comprehensive currently available o n its interesting subject.