Book of the Week:Ballet Shoes By: Noel Streatfield

This story of three orphan sisters adopted by a loving a man to be raised by an old fashioned female guardian was a lovely read. The three adopted sisters, all unique in their personality and background are bound together by sisterly love and their determination to put their name in the history books. It is certainly a page turner. The eldest, Pauline wants to become a Shakespearean actress. Petrova, the bright automobile/airplane-obsessed tomboy has very little interest in dancing and performing. The youngest, Posy exudes tremendous skill and absolute self confidence in her destiny to be a dancer.

Enjoyable as it is, it has an obsession with class. It focused on a nursery world of wholesomeness: manners, good clothing, tasteful story books and proper upbringing. The children are constantly being warned about modesty. Being shamed for showing off instead of encouraging the girls to take pride in their skills. Perhaps that aspect is the hardest to overcome in this book.