Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance (Ivy & Bean, Book 6) [Hardcover]

Annie Barrows (Author), Sophie Blackall (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2009 | Grade Level: 1 and up | Series: Ivy & Bean (Book 6)

Finally! After begging their parents for ballet lessons, Ivy and Bean finally get what they want...well, not exactly. Much to their surprise, it turns out ballet lessons do not include karate chops and roundhouse kicks to the villain's heart. The girls have no interest in learning how to dance gracefully, but they promised their parents they would finish the entire ballet course! When it comes time for Ivy and Bean to participate in the ocean-themed class recital, the girls must figure out a way to get out of it without breaking their promises.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 2–3—Second-graders Ivy and Bean return to their mischievous ways as they beg their parents for ballet lessons. They get what they want, but class isn't exactly what they expected. Instead of the "kicking" and sword they saw in a picture of the ballet Giselle, they are disappointed to be learning positions, pliés, and how to be butterflies. When they are cast as squids in their first recital, they come up with several ideas for how to get out of performing without breaking their promise not to drop out of class. The story is solidly written, and the expressive black-and-white illustrations, some full page, add to the humor. Early chapter-book readers will appreciate and relate to the friends' dilemma.—Sarah Polace, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Parma, OH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Friends Ivy and Bean are opposites, but in this installment of the series, they agree on one thing. They want to take ballet lessons. Their parents, having been through their enthusiasms before, insist the girls must not quit and must not complain. This is easier said than done when, after the girls realize ballet is not all spins and tutus, they are cast as friendly squid in the underwater-themed recital. Another pleasing adventure, engagingly illustrated and fun for new readers. Grades 2-4. --Ilene Cooper

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 122 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (October 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811862666
• ISBN-13: 978-0811862660
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 6.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #136,033 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #68 in Books > Children's Books > Arts, Crafts & Music > Performing Arts > Dance

More About the Author

I could tell you a whole bunch of facts about myself--born here, went to school there, blah blah--but that doesn't seem like much fun. So I've decided to make you guys do some work. If you can figure out these puzzles, you'll know all sorts of interesting things about me. And many of them are true, too.

1. I was born in a year with a 2 in it. Also a 6.
2. I was born in a city in California that begins with an S and has eight letters total.
3. The first time I moved, I couldn't move.
4. My best friend lived next door, had four older brothers and sisters, and a name that rhymes with Gabe. She had thirty-seven plastic horses and one real horse.
5. My first job was in a place with lots of books. My second job was in a place with lots of sugar. My third job was in a different place with lots of books.
6. I went to college in a town with a K in it and I studied a subject that ends in Y.
7. After I was done with college, I got a job. And then another one. And then there was one after that. Don't worry about it.
8. One of the following things is not true: I have been up in a hot air balloon. I have six toes on one of my feet. I can read palms.
9. I have written fifteen books under three different names. See if you can figure out what they are.
10. I have two pets. They are bigger than a bar of soap and smaller than a shoe, and they really like parsley.

Have fun!
Annie Barrows

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars favorite series with lots of laughs!, November 4, 2009

By 

Great Kid Books "helping parents find great b... (-------------------------------Berkeley, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance (Ivy & Bean, Book 6) (Hardcover)

I love books that combine laugh-out-loud moments with the ah-ah moment "that could really happen to me!" Ivy and Bean is one of my favorite series for 1st - 3rd graders - I love these two friends who are so goofy and full of mischief, and yet remind me of all the things I almost did!

Don't we all know kids who have begged, and I mean begged, for something? A puppy? a new toy? a glittering pair of shoes? Well, Ivy and Bean have seen amazing pictures of ballet dancers and they're sure that it's the perfect thing for them. Giselle kicks her pointed toe so fiercely toward the duke that she's surely going to snap his head off. And the Wilis get to dance with these cool long flowing finger nails, as they dance the duke to death! What kid wouldn't want to do that?! So Ivy and Bean beg, and beg, and beg with wobbly lower lips to take ballet class. They promise that it will be different than ice skating or softball. And they promise: no quitting. And NO complaining. But that's before they know ... how ballet classes really are. Especially when you get assigned the roles of the squid in the final performance.

If your child has fun with this series, they'll enjoy this latest book. It's a great series to read aloud to kindergartners or 1st graders, or for 2nd & 3rd graders to read by themselves.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ivy and Bean fans, October 1, 2010

By 

Marsha M. Hand "Grammy" (Woodland, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ivy and Bean Doomed to Dance (Book 6) (Paperback)

My 7 year old granddaughter loves Ivy and Bean adventures. She laughs at the "Bean comments". I'm looking for books with girls that think, use good language, and are curious. I approve of Ivy and Bean. We read books 1-7 and then preordered the last book before it was even finished.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Ivy and Bean cause trouble . . . again, December 21, 2009

By 

S. Agusto-Cox "Savvy Verse & Wit" (Germantown, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance (Ivy & Bean, Book 6) (Hardcover)

Normally, I don't review children's books, but I've made an exception (yes, they do happen). I remember buying a set of Ivy + Bean books for The Girl from Diary of an Eccentric because one of the books had to do with dinosaur fossils and I had read on someone's blog (not sure who) that these books were fantastic. The Girl, suffice to say, loved them and told me all about the straws up the nose and other little tidbits from her books.

Ivy and Bean are typical second-grade girls who are willing to try just about anything, and they sometimes find themselves getting into trouble or at least over their heads. In Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance (Ivy & Bean, Book 6), the girls read a book about ballet and decide that they should take ballet, so they can become ballerinas in Giselle. The only problem is that ballet is not as fun or easy as it seems.

While Ivy and Bean get into trouble -- and what kid doesn't? -- they always manage to find the positive in their situation or make amends. Some of the funniest scenes in this book are when Ivy and Bean try to get sick on purpose, having other kids cough and sneeze all over them. Young readers will laugh out loud at the antics of these young girls, and parents will enjoy these books because of the lessons they teach about responsibility and imagination. Ivy & Bean: Doomed to Dance (Ivy & Bean, Book 6) is a fun read at nearly 130 pages, and these characters will worm their way into kids hearts easily.