Book Description

Abigail’s Ballet Class tells the story of a precocious 3 ½-year-old girl about to embark upon her first ballet class.Apprehensive at first, Abigail quickly warms to the class and marvels at how much she looks like a real ballerina. Abigail’s Ballet Class is a book that teaches children to "try it, you might like it."The moral of the story is an old one, but the method of teaching it is incredibly innovative. By putting an Abigail doll in the hands of the reader, the characters come to life, and reading becomes an entirely interactive and exciting experience. ... Read more

Book Description

Mid-semester brings with it the results of the girls’ appraisals, and thoughevery student at The Royal Ballet School is talented, not everyone has what it takes to go all theway. Although Ellie passes her appraisal with flying colors, everyone at school is tense withworry that one of them won’t make it. Ellie is especially concerned when Sophie returns and justdoesn’t seem to be acting like herself. What will happen if one of the girls is assessed out? Whatwill they have to fall back on? ... Read more

Book Description

Few ballet dancers have held the world’s attention like Rudolf Nureyev. Naturally talented and technically brilliant, Nureyev had a charisma that knocked the dancing world on its heels. This stunning book is a very personal glimpse of a unique artist through the eyes of a fellow dancer and friend.

Linda Maybarduk was a first soloist with the National Ballet of Canada, one of Nureyev’s favorite companies. She tells the story of her colleague, her mentor, and her dear friend from his late start as a ballet dancer, through his escape to the West and meteoric rise to fame, to the sad ending of his career, when his body, but never his spirit, was defeated by age and illness.

Complete with a glossary of ballet terms, a useful reading list, and index, this is a book for both those who dance, and those who wish they did. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A fine biographical sketch for young readers.
This memoir of Rudolf Nureyev provides a memoir of the fine dancer who defected to the West from the Soviet Union during the Cold War. A fine biographical sketch reveals his dancing career and life for students in the middle school level on up. END ... Read more

Amazon.com

Young ballerinas who love to leap, twirl, flutter, or float in theirleotards and tutus will be enchanted by Peter Sís's graceful celebrationof dance in Ballerina!. A little girl named Terry changes from pink tututo blue gown to violet cape to white feather boa as she dances and imaginesherself as the prima ballerina in The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty,Cinderella, and Swan Lake. In her mind's eye, the little girl shesees in her bedroom mirror becomes a willowy, poised, grownup dancer with allthe glamorous trappings of a real performance. By the end of her ownperformance, Terry gathers her many different colored scarves and becomes thebest ballerina of all, while her audience (her mother and father) "claps andclaps and claps."

Peter Sís, creator of such favorites as Madlenka and the CaldecottHonor book for older kids, Tibet:Through the Red Box, brings the joy of dance to the printed page. Terryappears on the left pages in each successive costume, while on the right pagereaders see a transformed ballerina reflected in her big bedroom mirror,captioned by a dance position or movement: "tiptoe," "dip," "stretch." (Ages 4to 7) --Emilie Coulter ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Brava! Brava!
Caution: extra energy required. Don't just sit and read this book to your child - perform it with her! My daughters and I love to "leap" and "twirl" and "dip" and "flutter" along with the main character, Terry. This is the perfect book for aspiring ballerinas. In fact, any child who loves music, loves to dance will love Ballerina! Peter Sis, illustrator of many children's books, has portrayed Terry in bold black and white strokes to complement his simple patterned text. Terry's imaginary prima ballerinas that appear in her bedroom mirror soar in contrasting color. He references several well-known ballets, such as The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, and Cinderella. Each graceful movement is accompanied by a different color of the rainbow. Applause! Applause!

a must for you little ballerina
I purchased this book for my two-year old "ballerina." She is learning her color words and this book is one of the reasons! She loves saying the book along with me (ex: "flutter" "dip" "twirl") and even gets inspired to do a few ballerina twirls of her own!!

For Those Who Love to Dance...
Little Terry loves to dance and she practices everyday in front of the big mirror in her bedroom. She dons different costumes and watches herself as she twirls, leaps, dips, flutters and floats, in a pink tutu, red leotard, blue gown or yellow turban... And in the mirror, she watches a more mature and poised Terry dance..... Peter Sis has authored a simple, gentle story all budding ballerinas will love and want to imitate. On the left hand page, little Terry practices her steps. While on the right hand page, she watches herself as a more grown-up Terry dance, expertly. His minimal text is delightfully combined with charming and expressive line drawings with just a little color in all the right places. Perfect for pre-schoolers, Ballerina is a must have book for all those who love to dance.

Know a dancer?
Along the same veins as Dinosaur! and Ship Ahoy, this charming book works very well for those young ballerinas, or young girls who love to dance. The illustrations are clear and colorful, and the story does not get lost on the page, nor does it overshadow the pictures. I recommend this book for anyone who has a young ballerina in their life! ... Read more

Book Description

For young ballet fans, 23 enchanting peel-and-apply images of dainty duos in tutus, soloists en pointe, and other enchanting little performers.
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Reviews (1)

Maisy and Friends Twist and Shout, Among Other Dances
If you are the parent of a young child, you probably know who Maisy is. She's a mouse with a duck, a squirrel, an elephant, and a crocodile for friends. Why the crocodile isn't trying to eat the others is beyond me, but that's life in Maisy's world.
Both of my daughters love the Maisy books; there's something about their simple stories and colorful pictures that even appeals to adults. The books are short and easy to read. But, the stories are never obnoxiously simplistic, like so many other books for small children.

This is a Maisy noise book which means that if you can hear musical noises as you read along. My four-year old loves to demonstrate the dances. Each section of the book features Maisy and one of her friends doing a different dance. As with all Maisy books, the toddler set loves them. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Tom Tierney in the Classroom
I teach second grade in a public school and I find that my students have very limited exposure to the world. Using paper dolls in my classroom is a way of bringing historical epochs to life in a very concrete way by providing faces and apparel suitable to the time period for the children to relate to. The books appeal to both male and female students because the artist uses boys and girls in his works. I buy his books when I see them; however, I never cut them up. They are too valuable as a classroom resource. Well done, Mr. Tierney. ... Read more

Book Description

Cha, cha, cha! Do you know how many different dances there are? Elmo does! Toddlers will love lifting the flaps and discovering all the fun Elmo has when he gets down and boogies.
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Reviews (1)

A great lift the flap book for Elmo lovers
Our toddler loves this book. Particuarly the confusion between "flamingo" and "flamenco". Now when he sees flamingos in real life he says no and vigorously shakes his head. "Not the flamingo, the flamenco Dorothy" ;-) ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Pretty Pictures! (But don't expect a How-To or a story)
The illustrations are gorgeous!

Unfortunately, in picture after picture (not ALL, but way too many) the arms are in the wrong position in relation to the legs, which is a very unbalanced thing for a young child to try to imitate... and the beautifull illustrations are so engrossing that it's hard to explain to a youngster that the picture is showing either the wrong leg forward or the wrong arm up...

The so-called story is lacking any real plot, but then, that isn't why you buy this book anyway. Any young child will really really love the artwork. And unlike many other books on ballet, this one shows children, so little girls relate to it in a more personal way.

Buy it for the pictures, but for a how-to of steps and positions, get a different book that is more accurate.

If you love ballet then you will love this book
I am an x ballerina and now my young daughter dances. She can't get enough of theis book and reads it over and over again. We loved the illustrations so much, that we wrote to Ms. Isadora and asked if she would sell us a piece of art from the book! The book simply but thoroughly explains ballet to a young child but to a novice as well. I am just thrilled that such a book is available! ... Read more

Book Description

Lettice Rabbit wants to be a ballerina more than anything else in the world. But is being the star of the show really better than being a rabbit? ... Read more

Book Description

Ballet is the most important thing in Stephanie's life. But the reality of dance is tough, and Stephanie's parents fear that she doesn't realize how few opportunities there are for black ballerinas. Then, the remarkable Miss Winnie and her handsome and talented nephew, Vance, show up in ballet class one day. And Stephanie begins to discover a different kind of love ...and a different understanding of what's important.

Awards:

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age ... Read more

Reviews (23)

Inspiring - whether you're a dancer or not
When I first picked up this book, I was a little skeptical. I was not a dancer, had never been a dancer, nor had conjured up the plans to become one in the near future. I sat down to read the novel and more than once wondered what I was doing with such a book. It was not the typical writing genre I enjoyed, but with personally knowing the author, I stuck with it nonetheless.

As the pages flew by, I found myself becoming exceedingly engrossed in Stephanie's world. I felt her pain when she continued to face setbacks from both her parents and herself as she pursued her dancing, but I also felt her jubilation when she excelled.

Dancer is wonderfully written and very true to life. Being a teenager myself, I sat in awe as I realized that I had no trouble accepting the typical teenage lifestyle Hewett painted as fact.

The connection between Stephanie and Vance I thought was a powerful one, and perhaps a little unconventional. Most of the books I've read have had a different chemistry than the one Stephanie and Vance shared, and I was relieved to find a change of pace. They both possessed the talent to dance, but Vance felt more pushed into it than Stephanie did.

I thought that the relationship between Winnie and Stephanie was engrossing, especially when the reader is hit with the realization that maybe Winnie has been planning to turn Stephanie into her all along.

This book portrays the idea that being an African-American dancer is no small feat, and Hewett backs this core theme up several times throughout the novel. For this reason I found the book far more impacting, especially when Stephanie makes it as a dancer when even she begins to have doubts.

By the end of the story, I still wondered what I was doing with ballet book in my hand; however, my skepticism was gone and I was left with no regrets. Dancer is an amazing book that pushes people to strive for their goals, even when they might have to defy everyone who stands in their way. It conveyed a powerful message and left me grinning when I finally closed the cover.

If you like dancing you'll love this book!
I'm 11 years old and I love dancing. I really liked this book, it is filled with love, ballet, and you might be able to relate with it. It is about a teenage girl who loves dancing, but her parents don't want her to become a dancer. She meets Ms.Whinnie who is encouriging her and then she meets Ms. Whinnie's nephew Vance. He is a dancer too, but he doesn't like ballet as much as he does freestyle. Vance and Stephanie start dancing together and Stephanie loves it. She loves Vance. She starts spending alot of time with Ms.Whinnie and her parents don't like it. Stephanie is a very good student, but she doesn't have any friends, she meets one of the only other black girls in her school who is really popular and she becomes friends with her. In the end Stephanie gets what she wants........

Had me dancing...
To Stephanie, an African American ballerina, dancing is life. Yet her parents don't understand her, her dance teacher flat out tell her she wasn't good enough to get the main part in their performance of Sleeping Beauty, and she is warned that there isn't always room for black dancers in ballet corps. As she struggles to fulfill her dream of making it as a professional dancer, her experience with Vance, also a black dancer, teaches her a lot of things and gives new hope to her dreams.

In my opinion, this was a truly amazing book. I was really able to understand the main character and her struggles, even though I have never danced in my life. Well written, I found myself cheering for Stephanie as she tried to hard to accomplish her dream, while wanting to be 'normal' at the same time. Definitely a book I will want to buy.

Terrific!
Dancer shows readers what being a real ballet dancer is like- how you have to work hard, how you have to love it with everything you have, how you have to make sacrifices for it. But what separates Stephanie from all the other dancers is that she doesn't fit the mold. She's black, and ballet dancers are supposed to be snow white, according to some old-fasioned person. Despite this, she's still one of the best dancers at her dance school. Stephanie also doesn't fit in at her school.

I love Stephanie's connection to Vance. It's a deep feeling that is hard to describe, but you don't find it often in books. Vance is realistic and his attitude about ballet was funny (at least to me!).

You'll like this book even if you don't dig ballet. (I'm a ballet dancer, so I REALLY liked it.) This book is mostly about fitting in and liking yourself and how different people act. The ending is PERFECT, but it leaves you wanting more!

I'm not a dancer, but I enjoyed this book.
I took ballet lessons when I was very young. It was more the story of romance and friendship that interested me, rather than the ballet. I read most of it in one afternoon, which is pretty rare for me anymore. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Who is the best dancer in the jungle? Flip the flaps and sing and dance along with the tigers, elephants, and flamingos in Jungle Jive. This oversized BD features five spreads, bold illustrations, and adorable animated characters to delight and entertain children for hours. ... Read more

Book Description

Introducing a ballet class in a book. Created by Lise Friedman, a passionate ballerina as a little girl who grew up to dance with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, and photographed by K.C. Bailey, whose dance photography is part of the Lincoln Center Dance Collection, First Lessons in Ballet is an intimate and innovative approach that takes the reader right into the studio and teaches basic steps and positions.

Each spread works as a lesson. On the left, in a full-length, silhouetted photograph with callouts, a young ballerina named Rebecca demonstrates each move. On the right, a group of younger kids who might be the reader's fellow students practice the moves, while brief text, written in the voice of a master teacher, explains exactly what to do. Covered are the five basic positions of ballet, followed by a series of exercises just as they would be performed in class--barre exercises, such as plie and rond de jambe; centerwork exercises, including arabesque and pas de bourree; and such jumps and turns as changement, pique, and emboite. Class finishes with reverence--a formal way dancers thank their teacher--and the book ends with a brief discussion of the next steps in ballet--pointe work and partnering. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

little girl in need of guidance
I have a little girl,Anna, whom just recently started into her first year of serious ballet instruction. She felt nervous and scared that she would look silly in front of the other girls who have been taking classes since their pre-school years. Anna on the other hand has only been taking them for a year and still has a hard time remembering all the names and termology. I purchased this book about a week after she started instruction and we have enjoyed every moment together. The description of the steps make it very easy for me to relate and tell her how to hold herself proper, and the pictures are a great reference for her when mom is not around. After reading the book Anna has received confidence and poise that I don't think she knew she had in her. Great Book for beginners! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Behind-the-scenes look at the world of ballet
"Footnotes" is a wonderful book for anyone curious about the ballet world. This book goes through seven ballets, gives information about each one, tells about people who have danced them, gives you an inside look behind the scenes for each ballet, and the book has more than 100 beautiful, full-color photographs. This is an awesome book, and perfect for dancers and ballet fans alike.

With over 100 photos of the dancers on stage
Frank Augustyn and Shelley Tanaka's Footnotes ...explores the world of ballet, examining seven classic ballets and those who have danced them. Famous performers are interviewed and over 100 photos of the dancers on stage and behind the scenes are presented. ... Read more

Book Description

To a boy embracing life, the world is at his fingertips. To a girl dreaming her dreams, the prospects are endless. Celebrated here are the special joys of childhood, especially the wonderful sense of being a part of it all. Today, the child is a cat stretching in the sun. Tomorrow, she could be the sun. Tomorrow night, he could be the moon. The words are plain, yet the images are poetic. The illustrations are simple, yet warm and engaging. Both convey basic truths and heartfelt emotions with which young readers will readily identify. ... Read more