Ballet Sisters: The Newest Dancer
Kindergarten-Grade 2—Bonnie and her younger sister, Sylvie, are back in another easy reader. In three short chapters, Sylvie meets Bonnie's ballet teacher, has a Not-Birthday with presents of ballet clothes, and has her first class. While Ormerod'sBallet Sisters: The Duckling and the Swan(Scholastic, 2007) focused on the girls' relationship, this one focuses on the dance, including several pages on what Sylvie learns on her first day in class. Yet, children still see the expected sibling interaction including Bonnie's annoyance, support, then pride in the younger child. In the end they dress up and dance together. The stories, narrated by Bonnie, are short and easy to follow. Borders of ribbons with bows at the corners encompass the watercolor illustrations and the text. Plenty of white space allows the full impact of the simple and effective pictures to come through. While it can stand alone, this book works best when paired with the first one.—Catherine Callegari, formerly at Gay-Kimball Library, Troy, NHCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.