Chasing Degas
Grade 3–5—Degas has painted the ballet students as they rehearse in the opera house many times, but today he has left with the wrong bag, and a young dancer must return his paints and recover her tutu before it is time for her performance that evening. She searches the streets of Paris for the artist and meets several other Impressionists along the way, and each one leads her closer to Degas. The inclusion of certain facts is awkward. For example, after telling the ballerina to look for Degas at the art shop, Renoir adds, "Did you know that the color black doesn't exist in nature?" Expressive pastel illustrations lend appeal. An author's note and color reproductions of the art that inspired the story will help young readers make connections, but this contrived tale may not hold children's attention.—Lisa Glasscock, Columbine Public Library, Littleton, COEND