Spy Kids En Pointe! Boy in a Tutu (Spies in Disguise) by Kate Scott

If I could go back in time and tell my old self that he was going to leave his home, his school, and go on the run from enemy spies--and have to go undercover AS A GIRL--he would have laughed.

But I am not laughing. Sam is, though. Loudly. "I can't wait to see you in a tutu." She dissolves in giggles.

We're up in my room with the file Mom and Dad gave us to go over, but Sam seems more interested in my new disguise.

I ignore her. I want to be a proper spy, and doing well in this job is the first step to making sure that happens.

Joe's parents are professional spies, now in a sort of witness protection system which requires deep cover. Mom and Dad are used to this sort of thing, Disguise is their specialty. But for Joe, this is an enormous change!

"I've had to go undercover--as a girl.

To throw the enemy agents off, Joe has to portray a convincing ten-year-old blonde girl named Josie, complete with sparkly bunny hair clips. Only his best friend Samantha, a.k.a., Sam, knows his real identity, and she comes in handy when he needs some lessons in faking a girly-girl. As his BFF, Sam provides perfect cover.

But according to headquarters the counterspy agents are getting too close for comfort, and Josie's parents come up with a double mission for Josie and Sam: Josie will take an intensive ballet class at the local community center to establish his identity as a girl, and the two kids will also be charged with helping foil a rumored planned heist of the Soccer Memorabilia exhibit scheduled at the same time as their dance recital. Josie and Sam are given training and lots of cool spy gear--self-stick eyeball cameras, tamper testers, tracking devices, and a laser mapping wand. Using the ballet class as a entree to the building, they soon have the whole building bugged and are beginning to gather information about the employees.

But Josie and Sam settle on different suspects. Josie is sure the swim team director is the true soccer thief, because he hangs around the soccer display a lot and because he tries to recruit Josie and other kids to swim in his swimming match as an excuse to case the Soccer exhibit. Sam becomes convinced that their ballet teacher is the real crook, setting up a loud and raucous finale to their recital to cover the robbery.

Sometimes it feels like Sam's better at everything than I am.

Sometimes that's a bit annoying.

But as they continue to spy on their respective suspects, Sam and Josie discover that they are both right--there are dual bad guys at work in this caper. And together they come up with a masterfully clever switch for the swim meet which foils the counterspy coach's plot to, er, reveal Josie's real identity and endanger him and his parents.

There's plenty of suspenseful spy kids sleuthing, spy talk, and clandestine gizmos in Kate Scott's clever Spies in Disguise: Boy in a Tutu (Scholastic Press, 2016), now available in a new American paperback edition tailor-made for the middle reader trade. Joe's uneasy role playing a girly-girl with pink kitten hair clips and a sparkly tutu adds some light-hearted humor to the spy-story genre, with just the right hint of real danger to heighten the action.

Other books in this series are Spies in Disguise: Boy in Tights and Spies in Disguise: Boys in Heels.

The Show Must Go On! Zombelina Dances the Nutcracker by Kristyn Crow

IT'S ME, ZOMBELINA. THE TRYOUT'S TODAY
IN THE OLD OPERA HOUSE, WITH MY CORPSE DE BALLET

I'M HERE FOR THE NUTCRACKER. IT'S MY AUDITION.

I KNOW I'M GOING TO STIFF THE COMPETITION.

But in going for the big role of the season, Zombelina's got a couple of problems. No, it's not her legs flying off when she does her jetes. Madame just calls that grand extension. It's that she has to try out against her best friend Lizzie. And then, there's Grandpa Phantom (of the Opera), who just loves to, er, generate his special effects in the lighting of the old opera house.

But Zombelina wows the judges and wins the part of Clara. This time it's Lizzie relegated to the chorus. but the two friends both work hard to master their moves and finally it's opening night. The lights dim, and in dead silence from the enchanted audience, Zombelina begins to dance. The Mouse King threatens the Prince, and it is time for the dramatic climax of the scene.

WHEN IT'S THE MOMENT, I TAKE OFF MY SHOE
TO THROW IT AT HIM (JUST AS CLARA MUST DO.)

BUT OH, WHAT A MESS. AS YOU WOULD PROBABLY GUESS--
MY FOOT ENDS UP SAILING ALONG WITH MY SHOE.

But Zombelina pulls herself together to climb into the sleigh with the Prince for the grand finale of the first act, when suddenly something happens to the stage lights. The spotlights dim and suddenly nothing can be seen of the dancers--mice and all--except their bones.

ZZAAP! The corps de ballet is a group x-ray!

But Zombelina is one dancer who can think on her feet (if she has them at the moment). She whispers to her friend to switch roles with her while she puts the kabash on Grandpa's pranks backstage. But Lizzie protests that she doesn't know Clara's steps!

ZOMBELINA GIVES LIZZIE HER LEGS. "LET MINE DO THE SHOW!
WITH CLARA'S LONG NIGHTGOWN, THEY WON'T EVEN KNOW."

LIZZIE LOOKS A BIT SQUEAMISH, BUT NODS "OKAY.
I'VE HEARD 'BREAK A LEG!' BUT NEVER THIS WAY!"

That's Showbiz! Detachable zombie legs do come in handy, and the show goes on, in Krystyn Crow's latest Zombelina story, Zombelina Dances The Nutcracker (Bloomsbury Press, 2015), in which the whole ballet company gives it all they've got (and then some). Author Crow knows her way around rhyme schemes and wordplay, and manages to work in the expected zombie tropes in a decidedly detached version of the usual Nutcracker Ballet story, while Caldecott-winning artist Molly Idle ably portrays Zombelina as a ballerina with grace and presence who knows how to exploit her unusual abilities. As School Library Journal puts it, "It had to happen: The Phantom of the Opera meets The Nutcracker!"

Share this one with Marilyn Singer's Tallulah's Nutcracker and James Mayhew's Ella Bella Ballerina and The Nutcracker (Ella Bella Ballerina Series.)

I Want To Be a Ballerina by Anna Membrino

I WANT TO BE A BALLERINA--JUST LIKE MY SISTER.

Mia's got a case of sibling rivalry--and a touch of tutu lust, too. Like a lot of little would-be ballerinas, it's the couture as much as the art that gives her a yen to dance.

She's got the tights, the leotard, the soft ballet shoes, and, of course, the tutu. But, as her big sister reminds her, the clothes don't make the ballerina. She needs balance.

BUT MIA," MY SISTER SAYS, "YOU TRIP ON THE STAIRS."

And then Sis goes on to enumerate the qualities that Mia also lacks--co-ordination and graceful moves, for starters. But the spunky Mia comes right back at her with the right attitude.

"I JUST NEED PRACTICE!"

Sis relents and takes Mia to observe her ballet class, and Mia tries to follow along from the sidelines. It's hard, Mia agrees, even if her tutu is as fluffy as anyone's. But she still believes that practice makes perfect and she won't quit until she can be a ballerina, too. And her sister is convinced that she has the right stuff.

"NOW WE CAN PRACTICE TOGETHER!"

It takes more than the tutu, as young ballerinas soon discover, in Anna Membrino's I Want to be a Ballerina (Random House, 2014). Preschool prima ballerina wannabes will giggle at Mia as she tries to improve her grace, trying not to clomp in Mom's high heels, and her sense of balance by stacking blocks and building a pyramid of cards, while absorbing the warning that dance requires discipline as well. Artist Smiljana Coh's bobble-head ballerinas, both boys and girls, keep the mood light as Mia tries to make all the right moves. Pair this one with Marilyn Singer's delightful Tallulah's Tutu and sequels (see reviews here).

Just Between Friends: Ballet Cat:The Totally Secret Secret by Bob Shea

"WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO TODAY, BALLET CAT?"

"YOU PICK, SPARKLES."

"LET'S MAKE CRAFTS!" SAYS SPARKLES.

"YAY!" ANSWERS BALLET CAT.

Best friends Ballet Cat and Sparkles the Pony never disagree. But when they spread out their art supplies and start to work, Sparkles spots a problem.

"OH, NO! WE SHOULD NOT LEAP WITH SCISSORS!"

Ballet Cat can't seem to curb her yen to dance while she crafts. And everyone knows it's not safe to jete' with sharp objects!

Time for a new plan! Sparkles produces the checkerboard and starts to set for a match. Ballet Cat is enthusiastic, so enthusiastic that she can't resist some high kicks. Kerplop goes the checkerboard with pieces sailing everywhere.

Sparkles the Pony picks them up politely and suggests that they set up a lemonade stand. But then, on the basis of recent experience, he nixes the idea right away, pointing that Ballet Cat's spins are sure to spill the lemonade sooner or later. Thoughtfully, Sparkles suggests that she might eschew spinning for the day. Ballet Cat replies, just a bit sarcastically.

"HA! GOOD ONE, SPARKLES!"

Like that's going to happen! It seems there's only one choice that accommodates Ballet Cat's spinning, twirling, and kicking. They will have to play ballet yet again today!

But as Ballet Cat fluffs her tutu and starts twirling, she notices that Sparkles is not getting a kick out of kicking and his twirls are half-hearted. Something is wrong, she says to Sparkle. (Ballerinas know these things, you know.)

"I CAN'T TELL YOU. IT'S A SECRET SECRET."

"IS IT THAT YOU ARE NOT SO GOOD AT BALLET? THAT IS NOT A VERY SECRET SECRET, SPARKLES."

"NO, NOT THAT." SAYS SPARKLES SOFTLY.

Sparkles tells Ballet Cat that he knows she won't be his friend if he tells HER his secret secret. Ballet Cat promises that nothing can change their friendship.

"SOMETIMES I DON'T WANT TO PLAY BALLET," HE CONFESSES, WITH A TEAR.

But Ballet Cat has her own surprising secret secret to tell, in Bob Shea's Ballet Cat The Totally Secret Secret (Hyperion Books, 2015), a brand-new easy reading tale of BFFs who put their friendship above everything else. In the straightforward style of Mo Willems' award-winning Elephant and Piggie stories for beginning readers, Shea's bold black line and boisterous colors contrast with the sensitivity of his narration in which real friends understand each other's feelings. (Cat reveals that even she is tired of ballet play every day.) Shea's expressive comic drawings--which use three dots and squiggles for Ballet Cat's necklace and tutu--are full of movement and his spare but skillful cartooning clearly reveals the emotions of his best-best friends. "Shea mines Ballet Cat’s dialed-up enthusiasm and Sparkles’s hangdog expressions for everything they are worth," says Publishers Weekly's starred review. A promising new series for young readers takes the stage, a fantastic follow-up for kids familiar with Shea's hilarious emergent readers' favorites, his Dinosaur Vs. series (see reviews here).

Middle Child Milieu: Matilda in the Middle by Cori Doerrfeld

MATILDA WAS A LITTLE BUNNY WHO LIVED IN A BURROW WITH HER MOTHER, HER FATHER...

AND HER BROTHERS AND SISTERS--HER MANY, MANY BROTHERS AND SISTERS!

Matilda loves her family, but her brothers and sisters (over two dozen of them) are so busy that she feels lost in the crowd.

Her mother notices. And one day she tells her middle daughter...

"I WANT TO DO SOMETHING JUST FOR YOU.

SO I SIGNED YOU UP FOR BUNNY BALLET!"

That turns out to be a brilliant idea. Matilda takes to her dance lessons, and after a bit of newbie nervousness, she loves being in a relatively smaller group and resolves to practice at home until she catches up with her class.But practice has its problems in Matilda's crowded household. Releves are doable, but a grand tour jete' is out of the question. There's just no room! But Matilda does the best she can to get through the practice moves, and her teacher, Miss Mileu takes notice.

"MATILDA, MY DEAR, I WANT YOU TO DANCE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STAGE WHERE EVERYONE CAN SEE YOU!"

Matilda is daunted; she has never been the center of attention in her life, but bravely she tries to buck up her courage and practices harder than ever, even though no one in the family seems to know or care about her upcoming recital. But there is a startling surprise in store for her when the Matilda takes center stage as the curtain goes up!

EVERYONE IN HER FAMILY, FROM THE YOUNGEST TO THE ELDEST, WAS THERE!

Middle-child Matilda finds that her place right in the middle of a supportive family is the best place to be as she has her moment in the limelight, in Cori Doerrfeld's latest, Matilda in the Middle: A Bunny Ballet Story (Little, Brown and Company, 2015). Matilda is a determined main character who shows that even a middle child can find a way to stand out in the crowd. With the popularity of both bunnies and ballet coming together in this charmingly illustrated rabbit tale, Matilda is going to be a standout in the well-populated ballet book crowd as well.

Taking a Bite of the Big Apple! Angelina's Big City Ballet by Katharine Holabird

ANGELINA WAS ON HER WAY TO MOST FAMOUS CITY IN MOUSELAND.

"WOW! I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO SEE THE BIG CHEESE!" SHE SAID.

ANGELINA WAS GOING TO PERFORM AT THE BIG CHEESE DANCE SHOW WITH HER COUSIN JEANIE.

Aunt Violet and Jeanie are there to meet them when the S.S Mousetania docks and to whisk them away in one of those famous yellow cabs to their downtown apartment. Angelina is dazzled by everything. She's never seen an elevator or someone's home on the tenth floor. Soon they are off on a whirlwind tour of the Big City sights--Parmesan Park Avenue and the Empire Cheddar Building! I'm not in Chipping Cheddar anymore, Angelina thinks to herself.

But it's not long before Cousin Jeanie starts talking about their performance. She has it all choreographed in her mind, and she tells Angelina something disturbing!

"TRY MY TAP DANCING! IT'S SO MUCH BETTER THAN BALLET!"

But in the best spirit of "the show must go on," Angelina diplomatically suggests to her cousin that perhaps they can pool their talents and come up with a unique two-way routine to wow the crowd, in Katharine Holabird's newest Angelina Ballerina saga, Angelina's Big City Ballet (Angelina Ballerina) (Penguin Group, 2014).  Holabird's text handles this danseuse dilemma with her usual empathetic writerly footwork, and Helen Craig's delicate pastel watercolor illustrations fairly sparkle, as the mouse cousins face the footlights in their fancy flapper costumes and deliver a stellar retro routine that brings the crowd to their feet.  Jeanie and Angelina are the toast of  Big Cheese Town as Angelina, still a ballerina, sails for home, a star of the Great Mouse Way.  This Angelina tale has a delightful dose of la danse for young ballet fans, especially in the season of The Nutcracker.

Mousetrap! Tallulah's Nutcracker by Marilyn Singer

THERE WAS ONLY ONE CHRISTMAS PRESENT THAT TALLULAH WANTED.

WHEN THE PHONE RANG, SHE WAS SURE HER WISH HAD COME TRUE.

"THEY PICKED ME! I'M GOING TO BE A A MOUSE IN THE NUTCRACKER!"

As is the job of little brothers, Becket points out that Tallulah disdained his role as Mouse in their dance school's production the Christmas before.

"BUT BEING IN A REAL BALLET COMPANY IN A REAL THEATRE IS BIG TIME!" TALLULAH INSISTED. "MAYBE I'LL BE ON TV!"

Tallulah throws all her energy into being a good mouse, trying to crawl creepily out of the clock as Clara falls asleep under the Christmas tree, Her knees take quite a beating, but Tallulah just knows that if she can impress the ballet master as the best mouse in the troupe, she will be paving her way to a starring role as Clara or even the Sugar Plum Fairy someday.

"I BET THEY ASK FOR MY AUTOGRAPH!" SHE DREAMS.

At last opening night comes. The huge theatre is resplendent, and the Sugar Plum Fairy sparkles in the stage lights. Tallulah's whole family is out front with hundreds of others, and although she secretly believes she is the very best mouse, she has some butterflies in the stomach as the director hisses "PLACES!" The orchestra begins the cue for the mice to make their entrance creeping out of the old clock and scurrying around the stage. "GULP!" thinks Tallulah as she senses the big audience watching for the first big scene in the story.

"I'M THE SCARIEST, MOST MARVELOUS MOUSE OF ALL," SHE REMINDS HERSELF!

But pride goes before a fall, and as the mice stealthily approach the footlights, Tallulah steps on the tail of the mouse in front of her.

"WHOMP!"

Tallulah barges into the fallen mouse in front of her and sets off a series of unfortunate events. concluding in a pile of mice and toy soldiers center stage. Chuckles spread through the audience.

The show must go on, and a much chastened Tallulah Mouse picks herself up along with the others as they regroup and finish their routine. Tallulah exits and runs for a place to hide, feeling that she's flopped in her one chance to be a star--ever!

But to her surprise, when the curtain goes down the dance master and the dancers playing Clara and the Sugar Plum Fairy find her and console her with stories of their own embarrassing stage moments. Playing a boy at Clara's Christmas party, the ballet master says he burped so loud the whole audience roared. "Clara" recalls the time she was dancing as a snowflake and went onstage still in her striped legwarmers, and "Sugar Plum Fairy" tells her about the time she did a fast pirouette and her tutu fell right off. These things happen, they say. That's show biz, but the show must go on. And then the dance master adds,

"BUT A REAL DANCER KEEPS RIGHT ON DANCING, AND THAT'S WHAT YOU DID."

As always, our Tallulah gets a little ahead of herself in her dreams, but gets some good advice from older and wiser dancers, in Tallulah's Nutcracker (Clarion, 2013). It takes a troupe to make a real ballerina, and luckily Tallulah has plenty of support for her big ambitions. As always, too, Alexandra Boiger adds her elegante watercolor artwork, revealing character in facial expressions and body language in a way that extends Marilyn Singer's skillful narrative. Little balletomanes will find Boiger's cover illustration of every young dancer's dream, the Sugar Plum Fairy, in her glittery white gown, irresistible, while taking comfort perhaps in just being in the show.

Other Tallulah tales by Maryilyn Singer are Tallulah's Tutu, Tallulah's Solo, Tallulah's Toe Shoes, and Tallulah's Tap Shoes (see reviews here) for all those aspiring ballet stars.

Closet Terpsichorian: Rupert Can Dance by Jules Feiffer

RUPERT LOVED TO WATCH MANDY DANCE.

THE ONLY TIME SHE STOPPED DANCING WAS WHEN SHE WENT TO SLEEP!

But watching is just not enough. Rupert himself wants to dance. He longs to leap and twirl and kick and swivel lithely as only a feline can.

But felis silvestris domesticus is a secretive species. No one must know, so Rupert waits until Mandy is deep in slumber, slips into her closet, and pulls on her blue ballet slippers.

And Rupert dances. He is lithe and limber. He slithers and swishes. He twirls and swizzles his tail. His eyes glow and his paws know no pause until dawn draws near and he has to curl up and pretend to be nothing more than a cuddly cat.

It is Rupert's little secret.

But then one night Mandy wakes up and witnesses Rupert's routine.

Rupert's solo career is wrecked, but Mandy is delighted. Now she had a dancing partner, just what she has always secretly wanted.

But Rupert resists. He hides under her bed, peering nervously out from under the quilt. Mandy stands where she is sure Rupert can watch and shows him the basic foot positions. Rupert refuses to take the bait.

Can Mandy trick Rupert into doing a duet? What if she pretends that she simply can't get that step right? She slips. She trips. She seems to have two left feet.

And of course Rupert falls for the ploy and soon creeps out to show her just how it's done, in Jules Feifer's latest, Rupert Can Dance (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2014). One glance at the cover, with Feiffer's gung ho cat lost in la danse, would make anyone (even a dog) laugh. Feiffer's trademark sketchy, wobbly black line and marker coloring gives Rupert just the right quirky, crazed cat look as he and Mandy demonstrate their pas de deux. A fitting book for ballet lovers and cat fanciers, which is most of the feminine readership of picture books these days, this one pairs well with Anna Kemp's pugnacious, pirouetting, prima pug, Bif, in Dogs Don't Do Ballet (Read review here).

It Takes Two: Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle

It takes two to tango!

But Flamingo looks down his nose (quite a honker there) at the chubby Flora, apparently enchanted with his elegant one-legged pose, balanced awkwardly on one swim fin, the other flapping as she wobbles. Caught in the act of copycatting, Flora nonchalantly looks away as if unaware of the tall pink bird in front of her.

But when Flamingo haughtily high-steps away, Flora follows suit. Flamingo performs a perfect arabesque, and Flora struggles for the proper straight-legged extension.

In Molly Idle's exquisite lift-the-flap, wordless book, body language tells the tale. At first miffed by this awkward imitator, Flamingo's moves flow with elegant ease into his sleeping pose, one leg folded up and head under wing, and Flora forces her body into her own imperfect version. Flamingo steals a peek from under his wings.

And it's game on, with Flamingo challenging Flora into poses that are difficult for her, head down, peering at him through her legs and slipping into a not-go-graceful somersault.  Flora turns her back to the big bird, blushing at her faux pas, as Flamingo seems to reconsider his moves.  Finally, he beckons to her with one wing. Flora follows again.

Flamingo leads his pupil in a plie' and a lovely eleve', and the two, a tall pink flamingo, and a tubby girl in pink swimsuit, yellow swimcap, and floppy flippers finally perform a more than passable pas de deux.

It's huge fun, and the two celebrate their finale with splashing cannonballs into the water!  Ballet partners and friends at last!

Molly Idle's expressive illustrations for her wordless Flora and the Flamingo (Chronicle Books, 2013) earned her a 2014  Caldecott Honor Award.  In a controlled palette of pinks, with just a bit of brown for Flamingo's beak and Flora's flippers and a fresco of pink blossoming branches across page tops and a bit of spot art of pale pink water lilies, Idle puts her two unlikely partners in action as they perform a lively duet.  Idle uses the flap device to advance the plot, letting her characters' subtle movements tell the story in increments, as Flora's steps become more and more skilled. A four-page gatefold spread shows the two hitting the water, derrieres first, opening to two glorious, giggling splashes, and the book closes as the two salute each other with a graceful reverence as Flamingo bows, and Flora drops a charming curtsy to her teacher.

Brava, Molly Idle!

Tripping the Light Fantastic: Fancy Nancy: Budding Ballerina by Jane O'Connor

I LOVE BALLET.  MY FRIEND BREE AND I GO TO CLASS EVERY WEEK.

WE DO NOT DANCE ON OUR TOES YET. BUT ONE DAY WE WILL.

After class Nancy and Bree show off their new moves to Nancy's family. They demonstrate their plie and their arabesque, and JoJo and even Daddy follow suit. But when Dad attempts a grand tour jete' he lands on his derriere rather than his toes!

Suddenly Nancy has a grand idea! She will open her own school of la dans, Nancy's Dancing Academy!

And in ten minutes Nancy's studio is ready, and la classe is in session. Daddy shows up in shorts and sneakers, apologizing good-naturedly:

"OH! I FORGOT MY TUTU!"

It's all in good fun as Daddy plays Le Buffoon with great humor and elan, in Jane O'Connor's latest little Nancy Clancy story, Fancy Nancy: Budding Ballerina (Harper Festival, 2013), with even Frenchy, Nancy's dog, getting into the act. Fun reading for those budding ballerinas who dote on ballet stories, one which dads should enjoy reading aloud to their en pointe-struck daughters. Pair this one with O'Connor's Fancy Nancy: Puppy Party for a perfect picture book pas de deux.

Meet the Prince!: Ella Ballerina and the Nutcracker by James Mayhew

ELLA BALLERINA’S BALLET CLASS WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN.  OUTSIDE THE OLD THEATER IT HAD STARTED TO SNOW, WHILE INSIDE, THE CHILDREN WERE VERY EXCITED.

“IT’S THE PERFECT WEATHER FOR TODAY’S LESSON,” SMILED MADAME ROSA, LEADING THEM TO THE STAGE.

On the stage is a glittering tree, and the students are surprised to begin their warm-up on stage with holiday scenery, but with a mysterious smile, Madame Rosa motions for them to follow her backstage, all the while relating the story of the Nutcracker and Clara’s visit to a fairy kingdom.

“I’D LOVE TO TELL YOU MORE OF THE STORY, BUT THEN  WE WOULDN’T HAVE TIME FOR YOUR SURPRISE.... FOLLOW ME!”

“A PARTY!” GASPED THE CHILDREN.

Beautifully decorated tables laden with Christmas treats await them, and the students are delighted, but then Madame Rosa remembers something left behind.

“ELLA BALLERINA, WOULD YOU FETCH THE MUSIC BOX?” SHE ASKED.

“THEN WE CAN HAVE SOME MUSIC FOR DANCING AT OUR PARTY!”

Ella hurries back into the darkened theater for the music box, but can’t resist opening it to hear that tinkling music that reminds her of the snowflakes outside. But when she does, she notices a figure under the tree, that of an older girl in a white nightdress, clutching a large nutcracker, and just waking up. She tells Ella her name is Clara and begins to tell her a story that sounds so familiar, how her mischievous brother Fritz has broken the clever nutcracker her uncle had given her. Then suddenly Ella notices something frightful.

"WE ARE SURROUNDED BY MICE!”

As so Ella finds herself part of the story of the Nutcracker as she and Clara defeat the Mouse King, release the Prince from the evil spell, and travel with him to the Land of Sweets for a whirlwind tour led by the Sugar Plum Fairy.

James Mayhew’s just-out installment in his ballet series, Ella Bella Ballerina and The Nutcracker (Barron’s, 2012) introduces young ballet fans to the famous Christmas ballet that all young dancers yearn for this time of year. Mayhew’s lovely watercolor illustrations set just the right fanciful tone for this dreamlike reenactment of the well-known story, the wonders of the land of the nutcracker king
as seen by a young ballerina like themselves.

Other books in this series include Ella Bella Ballerina and Cinderella, Ella Bella Ballerina and Swan Lake, and Ella Bella Ballerina and The Sleeping Beauty, a collection that is sure to delight balletomane fans of Marilyn Singer’s Tallulah books and Grace Maccarone’s Miss Lina's Ballerinas series.

Miss Lina's Ballerinas and the Wicked Wish by Grace Maccarone

ONE SUNNY DAY, A GUEST CAME TO VIEW

MISS LINA'S TEN DANCERS PLIE' AND TENDU.

MISS LINA ANNOUNCED, "THIS IS MISTER BRISE'.

HE'LL WATCH YOU TAKE CLASS," SHE EXPLAINED, AND HE MAY

INVITE YOU TO DANCE WITH THE CITY BALLET."

Miss Lina's dancers--Christina, Edwina, Sabrina, Justina, Katrina, Bettina, Marina, Regina, Nina, and Tony Farina--are tres excites when they are observed by Mr. Brise', knowing that this is an audition for the big performance of "Sleeping Beauty." But, alas, Regina loses her balance in the line, causing a domino effect among the dancers, ending with their newest member, Tony, falling onto the floor. It is only one misstep, but it means that, while the rest of the class are chosen to dance la valse with garlands of roses in the grand wedding procession, Regina and Tony must portray the giant rats who pull Beauty's carriage to the wedding.

Tony is totally down with performing the part of a rat, but Regina feels embarrassed with her fall from grace. She can't help wishing, just a little bit, that one of the waltzing girls will fall ill so that she can step in and claim her rightful place with the rest of Miss Lina's ballerinas. She even dreams of herself, waltzing gracefully, garlanded with beautiful roses, to the applause of the glittering opening night audience.

"Be careful what you wish for--because you might get it" is the well-trod theme of Grace Maccarone's and Christine Davenier's third ballet tale, Miss Lina's Ballerinas and the Wicked Wish (Feiwel & Friends, 2012), because Regina finds herself suddenly called on to replace Sabrina, who falls very ill:

SHE LEARNED SABRINA HAD THE FLU.

SABRINA'S DANCE WAS HARD TO DO--

PAS DE BASQUE AND SOUTENU!

And that's just the beginning, as one misfortune after another occurs. Nina and Martina, too, fall ill, and Edwina sprains an ankle, followed by a cascade of maladies and mishaps among the class, and Regina despairs that she can learn everyone's routine in time for the performance. Her wicked wish has come back to haunt her and she has even come to rue the scent of roses!

But the show must go on, as Regina repents her wicked wish in this sequel in the careers of Miss Lina's little corps de ballet, as the recovered ballerinas toe the mark on opening night in another delightfully brava pas de deux by this talented author and illustrator duo.

For young ballet fans the author thoughtfully appends a synopsis of the Sleeping Beauty ballet and a glossary of ballet terms.

Limelight for Two: Tallulah's Solo by Marilyn Singer

Tallulah knew she was an excellent ballet dancer. So she was certain that this year she would be doing a solo in the winter recital.

Tallulah has earned her tutu: her plie' is perfect, and her releve' is right on. She is attentive at class and she practices every day. And she is delighted when her little brother Beckett, who enviously watches her perfecting her moves before her mirror, decides that he would like to dance as well.

But Beckett is a little boy. He'd rather slide across the polished floor than practice en pointe. He finds the barre just the right height for hanging by his knees, and he uses the mirrors on the wall to make faces, not perfect his posture. He even wanders away to play with his toy trucks in the middle of class.

Tallulah persists in polishing her skills, however, and at the audition for parts, she's sure she's caught the attention of the Mr. Fontaine, the guest choreographer for the winter production of The Frog Prince. At last the long-awaited casting is posted:

The list was already on the bulletin board. Tallulah ran over to find her name next to "Princess."

But it wasn't there.

"Look, Tallulah" said her mother. "You're one of the princess's ladies in waiting! And Beckett, you're the frog before he turns into the prince!"

Tallulah totally loses her professional poise at the unfairness of it all. Beckett acts silly in class and gets a big role. She works hard, and what does she get? She gets to play second banana to someone else's prima princess performance. Tallulah sulks quietly at home and ignores Beckett's struggles to learn his duet with the princess.

At first Beckett is delighted, hopping hugely about and rehearsing his "Ribbits!" for all to hear. But as rehearsals drag on and the big day draws nearer, he begins to get scared. "I'll never do this right," he moans, as he falls out of his deep froggy plie' every time. Tallulah begins to re-think her petulant position. After all, Beckett decided to take ballet because he admired her. And Tallulah, as a member of the ompany, realizes that the show must go on and that she can help make their performance a good one with a careful extra coaching for her little brother.

By the recital, Tallulah was the most graceful of the ladies-in-waiting, and Beckett had become a pretty good frog.

Mr. Fontaine told him what an excellent job he'd done. "It's because Tallulah helped me," Beckett explained.

"I see," said the choreographer. "I'll remember that."

Hard work and esprit de corps are sure to pay off for our Tallulah in Marilyn Singer's sequel to her popular Tallulah's Tutu (see my review here), her latest, Tallulah's Solo (Clarion, 2012). Again illustrated by Alexandra Boiger's delightful pastel paintings, this latest story takes our Tallulah forth into her ballet career and by the time she earns the lead role she has learned there is more to stardom than a tutu and a perfect tour jete'.

For little balletomanes, pair this one with the similarly themed Miss Lina's Ballerinas and the Prince by Grace Maccarone, reviewed here, for a danse duet.

Who's Prima Now? Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet by Jane O'Connor

"I HAVE THRILLING NEWS--MEMORABLE, TERRIFIC, AND EXCITING ALL MIXED TOGETHER!

"WE'RE GOING TO BE IN A BALLET!" I TELL MY MOM AND JOJO. "IT'S CALLED DEEP-SEA DANCES."

I'M POSITIVE--THAT'S FANCY FOR 100 PERCENT SURE--THAT MADAME LUCILLE WILL PICK BREE AND ME TO BE MERMAIDS."

After all, Nancy and Bree are already knowledgeable about all things mermaid-ish. They have made mermaid outfits already, have redesigned their clubhouse, renamed the "Mermaid Mansion," and they practice daily, floating gracefully in their own private lagoon (Jojo's plastic backyard pool.) And at class their plies are pliant and their posture is perfect. Nancy even knows all the French ballet terminology. They can't wait to take center stage together in their glamorous mermaid costumes.

"NANCY, REMEMBER," MOM WARNS. "BEING IN A BALLET IS THRILLING, NO MATTER WHAT PART YOU HAVE.",

Sure that they are shoo-ins for stardom, Nancy and Bree really try to catch Madame Lucille's eye in class.

Mais non! When the casting is posted, the hopeful duo are disappointed. Savannah gets the plum role as prima mermaid. And even worse, neither of them make the mermaid corps de ballet. Bree is cast as an oyster, and Nancy is a tree! Not much chance for stardom or glamor in those dumb roles!

Nancy is consoled by the thought that at least Bree didn't make mermaid while she was stuck with being background scenery, and gamely the two give their roles their best shot, holding out at least for snazzy costumes. At least, Nancy consoles herself, she's a weeping willow, a tree with fancy possibilities, and she even begins to get into her role, practicing swaying and swooping gracefully in the imagined breeze.

And then... that predictable showbiz predicament presents itself. Savannah sprains her ankle and is unable to take the stage to lead the mermaid dancers. The show must go on, and suddenly there is a role available in the mermaid corps. But which one of the girls is going to get that sparkly, spangly role?

Jane O'Connor comes through again in her newest, Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet (Harper, 2012), hitting all the right notes in her latest chronicle of primary-grade problems. If Bree gets the open mermaid role, how will Nancy handle the understandable rush of jealousy as Bree gets sparkly, spangled fins while Nancy has to make do with tinsel branches? Will she be able to rise to the occasion and give her usual sparkle and elan to a background bit part?

O'Connor and illustrator Robin Preiss Glasser come through as always with a winner. Glasser's fancy artwork brings all the little dancers to life with charm and grace, portraying in facial expressions and body language the feelings of all the little dancers, and O'Connor hits just the right tone as she reveals Nancy's inner turmoil as she meets another early childhood rite of passage.

How Come You Deux Me Like You Deux, Deux, Deux?: Miss Lina's Ballerinas and the Prince by Grace Maccarone

In a cozy white house in the town of Messina
Nine little girls stood dancing with Miss Lina.

Christina, Edwina, Sabrina, Justina.
Katrina, Bettina, Marina, Regina, and Nina.

It is a very homogeneous corps de ballet. Even their names rhyme with their teacher's, and everyone is d'accord that things are just perfect at Miss Lina's ballet school.

But then, Miss Lina makes an announcement that turns their pirouettes into perplexities.

A dancer would join them the following day.

"He's a boy," said Miss Lina. "I want you to know.
He'll join us for class and our end-of-year show."

The ballerinas' brains are suddenly filled with images of themselves, dancing in the annual recital, not just with the corps, not even soloing in the spotlight, but dancing a classic pas de deux, a princess dancing those classic steps with her handsome prince.

But when Tony arrives for his first class, the sight of nine pink-clad princess wannabes posing en pointe is totally intimidating, and Tony turns his athletic audition into a dramatic dance exiting page right!

He took three big steps, then he bounced off the floor,
Did a split in the air and he soared out the door!

"Chasse!" said Miss Lina."Get him! Now, GO!"

The girls track him down at last to the zoo, where the outdoor setting inspires the whole class to join Tony in a wild, leaping dance for the appreciative animals.

They sprung and they lunged and they spun.
And the boy learned that a pas de deux could be fun.

Grace Maccerone's sequel to the popular Miss Lina's Ballerinas, her newest, Miss Lina's Ballerinas And The Prince (Feiwel & Friends, 2011) again parallels the classic Madeline stories in her clever versification style, and Christina Davenier's soft line and lavender and pink palette will have young balletomanes practicing their penches and promenades, and doing their developpes dutifully while they read this latest ballade of the nine ballerinas and their first pas de deux. As in her earlier book, Maccerone includes an appendix of ballet terms for the balletophile reader.