A Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical Dance (Book & CD) [CD] [Hardcover]

Laura Lee (Author), Meredith Hamilton (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Book & CD

The latest volume in Black Dog’s successful book-and-CD series combines the mesmerizing stories of the world’s great ballets with fun facts, dancing how-tos, history, profiles— all accompanied by charming original watercolors.

From Swan Lake and The Nutcracker to Peter and the Wolf and Fancy Free, the of twenty-five of the world’s best-loved ballets are told, accompanied by corresponding tracks on an enclosed CD. These are the charming stories that bring ballet to life on the stage, along with the music that has made them into enduring classics.

Surrounding the stories is a captivating, illustrated history of ballet, each page filled with information, artwork, and profiles of the world’s great dancers, choreographers, and composers. There are even instructions on ballet positions and the key moves that every dancer needs to know.

The musical selections included on the CD are keyed to specific points in the text, making the book uniquely interactive, educational, and fun.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Welcome to the magical world of ballet! In this book you'll experience dance in a whole new way—by listening and learning at the same time. You'll read about the history of ballet and its most famous dancers, composers, and choreographers. You'll find out a little bit about the different ballet steps and positions (and get a chance to try them yourself). And best of all, you'll read the wonderful stories of the world's greatest ballets, and, as the stories unfold, you can listen to pieces of music from some of them. Soon, you will be a ballet expert!

From The Nutcracker and Swan Lake to Rodeo, Fancy Free, and Peter and the Wolf, all of the world's most popular and beloved ballets are included here, illustrated with beautiful watercolors that you will want to return to again and again. Enjoy the stories (and the stories behind):

La Sylphide
Giselle
Coppélia
Don Quioxote
Swan Lake
Sleeping Beauty
The Nutcracker
Dying Swan
Firebird
Petrouchka
The Rite of Spring
Peter and the Wolf
Romeo and Juliet
Rodeo
Fancy Free
Circus Polka
Cinderella
Daphnis and Choloë

and more!

From the Back Cover

Listen while you learn about the world's greatest ballets, dancers, choreographers, and composers!

Why do ballet dancers stand like ducks? (Page 13)
How high can the greatest ballet dancers leap? (Page 27)
What famous ballet company was originally made up of orphans? (Page 32)
Which very popular ballet was a complete FLOP when it was first performed? (Page 37)
Name three ballets featuring toys that come to life. (Page 55)
Which ballet music sounds as if it was written for stomping giants rather than pretty ballerinas? (Page 58)
Which famous ballet dancer did a duet with Miss Piggy on The Muppet Show? (Page 81)

Enjoy stories of the world's great ballets, listen to the music that brings them to life—and find out lots of fun facts along the way—in this entertaining and colorful book for young dancers and dance-lovers at every level.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers; First Printing edition (April 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579126995
• ISBN-13: 978-1579126995
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #148,612 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #77 in Books > Children's Books > Arts, Crafts & Music > Performing Arts > Dance

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I like it, but the age rating may be wrong., March 1, 2008

By 

Kathrine - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical Dance (Book & CD) (Hardcover)

I bought this so that I would have something to read to my ballet students occasionally. It is a beautiful book, however, I would recommend it for maybe the 8-10 age group. The music is nice to listen to at any age though. I had quite forgotten how many of the themes of ballets are a little racy! And how would a 4-5 year react to stories about love triangles, suicide (Romeo and Juliet), and other "mature" themes in ballet. I think older ballet students would get more of a kick out of this book than 4-6 year olds would.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars CD of Ballet Selections Inadequate for What it Could Be, June 1, 2009

By 

Marjo L. Gardner (Camarillo, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical Dance (Book & CD) (Hardcover)

This book was a gift to my granddaughter. I have only read the section on Giselle, as that ballet was the one we were preparing to see. I found that the CD was a good idea, but only contained a brief piece from each ballet. Also, there was no verbal announcement, nor written guide to which piece on the CD went with which ballet.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book for Children, for Ballet Classes and as a Teaching Aid, May 29, 2009

By 

Jessie Dolezel "ballet prof" (Tulsa OK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Child's Introduction to Ballet: The Stories, Music, and Magic of Classical Dance (Book & CD) (Hardcover)

I am a dance teacher and I love using books and videos as teaching aids and supplements to my curriculum. This book is excellent, it tells the stories of the great classical ballets in short story, understandable format for children and includes music!