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Children's books

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Dance books for my 10yo niece

9 replies

tumbletumble · 30/08/2012 21:07

My niece is really into books about dancing. She has read the Ballet Shoes books by Noel Streatfield and enjoyed them - any recommendations for more along the same lines?

I have a vague memory from my own childhood of a book about a girl who loved ballet, then had to give it up because her feet were the wrong shape and got into modern dance instead. No idea of book name or author - does anyone recognise this?

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PomBearWithAnOFRS · 30/08/2012 22:39

Lorna Hill - her Sadler's Wells series is all about ballet and ponies Grin
I think your "wrong feet" girl might be Caroline from the series - try No Castanets at the Wells.
The first few of the series should be easy to find, the later ones tend to be quite rare and expensive, but A Dream of Sadler's Wells, Veronica at the Wells, Masquerade at the Wells and No Castanets should be easy enough to find I think.
There's one called Samantha on Stage, but I can't think who it's by - that's about a girl who is the star of her dance class, but then a Russian girl moves nearby and joins the class and is better than her. It's set in America though so is thoroughky "american" iykwim.

tumbletumble · 31/08/2012 08:36

Thanks PomBear, the Lorna Hill books look perfect for my niece.

I don't think they are the ones I was thinking of though... I have been digging deep into my memory and I think the main character was a girl called Moth - does that ring any bells with anyone...?

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visualarts · 31/08/2012 08:39

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tumbletumble · 31/08/2012 08:53

Thanks visual, I tried that and got it! The First Step by Jean Richardson. I'm so pleased!

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visualarts · 31/08/2012 14:54

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hels71 · 09/09/2012 17:27

I rememeber reading the Drina books.

DeWe · 09/09/2012 19:27

The Painted Garden and Curtain up (I think recently renamed as Movie Shoes and Theatre Shoes) by Noel Streatfield are along the same lines. The Fossil girls appear in them as side characters.
Wintle's Wonders (now Dancing Shoes) is similar too, as is White Boots, although that one is skating not ballet, also Party Frock (Party Shoes) and Ballet Shoes for Anna are other of her books that use ballet.

KitKatGirl1 · 09/09/2012 22:11

Oh my actual goodness, I cannot believe the weird series of coincidences that have just happened.

I usually only read the education threads on mumsnet; came over to look at adult fiction just tonight and then dropped by kids books.

Came to look at this thread as I was a huge reader of ballet books as a children and wanted to recommend the Sadlers Wells series, Drina series and Eva Ibbotson's Company of Swans.

Weird thing no 1 - I had thought I'd lost all my copies of Sadlers Wells and Drina and only this afternoon my mother in law announced that there were boxes of my books in her attic (why?) and that's where I found all these old ballet stories...

Weird thing no 2 - for absolutely years I have been trying to remember the name of another of my favourite childhood books about an American ballet dancer upstaged by a Russian girl (asking on book forums etc etc) and here it is, mentioned by PomBear, the exact book, swiftly ordered on Amazon before I've come to post!!

So, thanks OP and PomBear - I second all the suggestions and thanks so much for helping me remember this book...now I hope it's as good as I remember or there'll be another thread to post on!

tumbletumble · 10/09/2012 06:52

KitKat, what a lovely story! Enjoy re-reading the books from your childhood.

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