Reviews - Ballet Shoes | The StoryGraph

I picked up this book after it was recommended several times by [a:Anne Bogel|6537850|Anne Bogel|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], and it was worth the read. It's one of those Depression-era children's books that tout the value of hard work in the midst of poverty, but that doesn't make it inapplicable to today's children by any means. There's a bit of suspension of disbelief required, given that the main characters are constantly landing the theatre and dancing parts they try out for, but this is tempered with realism (Petrova is not talented like her sisters, though her hard work is enough to land her minor parts) and the jobs only allow them to help their household scrape by — they are constantly budgeting and calculating and trying to help their guardian make ends meet.

As an adoptive parent, I've gone back and forth on whether this would be a good book to read with my kids. (I listened to it on audiobook with my 5-week-old while feeding him, but that hardly counts!) On the one hand, it's great to see adopted children as the main characters of a book; on the other hand, their situation is very different — they're orphans, they consider the woman who cares for them their guardian, not their parent, and they create a brand-new last name for themselves to distance themselves from her. Ultimately I think it would be good to read and discuss unless I have a child who's particularly sensitive about their identity as an adopted child.

It's not a book I'd go out of my way to rave about, but it's worth a read. There are plenty of funny lines and moments, and the virtues it promotes are still valuable today. Also, the audiobook narrator is excellent and does the various characters' accents well.

readingspells's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated

4.5

I loved this book as a little girl. I treasured my copy and read it muliple times.

When I saw a group of people on Instagram reading it for a classic kids book club I decided to join in. Would it stand up to the test of time like The Borrowers or would I end up seeing it in a new, negative light, like Little Women?

The answer is way more Borrowers than Little Women.

There were a couple of things that I found uncomfortable which was to do with language. The word stupid was used quite a lot when it came to them learning and it made me realise how uncomfortable I am with that word especially when used about children.

But overall this book is a delight and if you think of the time it was written in really rather bold. All the main character are women, their are a couple of male characters but they are not minor in the scheme of it and all these women/girls coke across as smart, determined, opinionated even but also kind and loving.

So who did I want to be when I was little, I can't remember but I probably would have said Pauline but now I can see I am 100% Petrova.

kryskrosszee's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

ayelethashachar's review against another edition

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emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

1amtarth's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Sweet and quaint. Very like Little Women, though much simpler.

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