The Nutcracker
Kindergarten-Grade 4–Each holiday season seems to generate a new batch of picture-book versions ofThe Nutcracker. This edition adds little to the selections already in most collections. The relatively lengthy text tells the complete story of the ballet. Malone's exquisite watercolors depict a late-18th-century household in which a generous godfather presents his rather odd gifts of life-sized dolls and a small nutcracker figure that come alive in Clara's dream. An author's endnote gives the history of the ballet. A CD of the score performed by the Utah Symphony Orchestra is included.–Virginia Walter, University of California, Los AngelesCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.