Customer Reviews

The Pointe Book: Shoes, Training & Technique

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I first learned pointe, I studied at two different dance schools. My instructor at each school gave a short lecture on the foot and pointe dancing in general, and the majority of their presentations came from "The Pointe Book". I quickly went out and bought it and now as a teacher myself, I require my students to get and read "The Pointe Book". I have not found any other work to be as thorough and informative -- who knew that so much was involved in a pair of shoes?! If a student only reads part of the book, I would recommend the chapters on proper pointe shoe fitting and pointe-related injuries. The chapter laying out a sample pointe class has come in handy for some of my beginning work with students and also provides them with exercises to do on their own. My favorite chapter, though, would have to be Conversations on Pointe, which has pointe stories from many well-known dancers. It was great knowing that some of my opinions and experiences are also shared by some of the greats! Janice Barringer and Sarah Schlesinger have done all of us dancers a great favor with "The Pointe Book".

Now in a new and expanded second edition, The Pointe Book: Shoes, Training, & Technique is a remarkable manual and examination of ballet dancing pointe shoes, and the methodologies used by professionals. Choreographic experts Barringer and Schlesinger apply their years of knowledge and personal experience in the world of fitting and training with pointe shoes to matter-of-factly present how dedicated and athletic individuals achieve remarkable feats of grace and balance. Packed with detail, The Pointe Book is as comprehensive as can be covering everything from different types of shoes to the hazards of learning to walk on one's toes to resources for help with pointe-related injuries and much more. Highly recommended for anyone with a professional or casual interest in the world of ballet.

The Pointe Book: Shoes, Training & Technique Second Edition

I purchased this book because I am getting back into ballet after several years out due to non-ballet related injuries. I found a lot of useful information, but there were a lot of things that I also wished that the book had included, or had talked more about.

If you have absolutely no experience in ballet, or are not taking any training or don't have an experienced ballerina handy to answer questions, this book is going to be a bit confusing. It is excellent for giving you contact information and company and product reviews for ballet gear providers. However, I did notice that the information contained in the book on some of the companies and their products, particularly regarding pointe shoe sizing, differed markedly from the information provided by the company/manufacturer on their on websites. I would not rely only on the information contained in this book if you are going to purchase pointe shoes using this information. If you are going to order via the internet or mail order, please take the time to either visit a store for a personal fitting, or else contact the manufacturer via telephone, e-mail, or look over their website. Just by chance, I had recently purchased a new pair of pointe shoes by one of the makers listed, and had I used the book's size guide, I would have purchased shoes that were no where near the correct size.

It is an excellent resource for those that are taking class and have instructors to turn to for further explanation, or those that have some degree of en pointe experience. I do wish that the dance sequence sections had been a little more detailed; that section was a big disappointment as I found it was not anywhere near as marvelous as it had been billed.

Overall, there's just no real substitute for an en pointe class with a real, live, knowledgeable instructor in front of you to answer questions. Yet, I wouldn't just write this book off, and I don't think it was a waste to purchase it. It does highlight some good points and information, but it could be a whole lot better--and more complete.

since i have just started pointe this book has really helped me break in my shoes and give me really good excercises to stregthen my ankles. one of the people in this book is my ballet teacher so that is even better. if u have just started pointe or have been on it for a while or even if u dont do pointe this book is really interesting and helpful.

I have found this book very interesting to read, and somewhat helpful. The book is American based which means that not all the information is relevant to an Australian reader such as myself. The second half of the book presents detailed pointe classes which are very helpful, but if you are not familiar with all the terminology you will need a ballet dictionary to use the information. Over all I have found this book interesting and helpful from a student point of view but also think it would be a good read for anyone who loves ballet.

A really thorough guide to every pointe shoe there is out there, a great history of the technique, and lots of advice on pointe work. A great purchase for anyone interested in pointe work, but there's perhaps so much information on different shoes that it could be confusing for beginners.

I like that this book includes dance training opinions from many well-known professionals. It's good information to have. I really appreciate having other professional views to validate/compare what I've learned over the years. I think this book is a nice resource for students and new pointe teachers.

This is a good book for people who know nothing about pointe shoes, who need information for research, or for teachers. However there is so much unneeded information for the beginner student that it was overwhelming for me. There are better books out there. Not to say this one isn't good, but there are better ones.

This book was amazing as a teenage girl reading into the history of ballet and trying to figure out how much effort goes into a pair of shoes it was amazing to learn about the process. This book is magical, it is very informative and is constructed very well. It helps you understand how to prepare for pointe work and gives a basic syllabus for working on pointe. This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it even if you aren't in ballet yet but hope to soon or just as a fun read.

This book is a great resource for girls who are contemplating or beginning to us toe-shoes in ballet (en Pointe). It gives a lot of information about point shoes as well as information about foot care for dancers and how to practice. It was recommended by the ballet teacher, for all of her "point" students.