Product Description

Pauline, was rescued from a shipwreck as a baby. She longs to be an actress. Petrova, is a Russian orphan. She is happiest when playing with cars and engines. Polly was handed over with just a pair of ballet shoes to her name. If she could, she would dance all day! But one thing they DO have in common is, that with money running out at home and Great Uncle Matthew missing, the sisters want to stay together. Whatever it takes. As they prepare for a dazzling life on stage, the dreams and fears of the fossil girls are about to come true…

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5860 in Books
• Published on: 2004-03-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Review
A masterpiece (Telegraph )

'Ballet Shoes is one of my all-time favourite children's books - and you don't have to be a ballet fan to enjoy it.' - Dame Jacqueline Wilson

About the Author
Noel Streatfeild once said that Ballet Shoes was ‘really a fairy story with its feet half-way on the ground’ – a magical description for a magical book. Noel was born in Sussex in 1895 and was one of three sisters. Although she was considered the plain one she ended up leading the most glamorous and exciting life! After working in munitions factories and canteens for the armed forces when WWI broke out, Noel followed her dream of being on stage and went to RADA where she became a professional actress. She began writing children’s books in 1931 and Ballet Shoes was published in 1936. She quickly became one of the most popular authors of her day. When she visited Puffin exhibitions, there were queues right out of the building and all the way down The Mall. She was one of the first winners of the Carnegie Medal and was awarded an OBE in 1983. Noel Streatfeild lived in London. She died in 1986.

Customer Reviews

ballet shoes
I am 70 years old and read this book when I was six the memory of the enjoyment I had from reading this book has always stayed with me. I have bought it for my own daughters and my nieces when they were young now I want to give the same pleasure to my grand-daughters.

Wonderful book
I absolutely adored this book as a child. I'm now 45 and am looking forward to reading it to my niece. The characters are instantly appealing and wonderfully drawn. But my favourite bit is how good she is at describing comfort - if something horrible happens or one of the characters is unwell (and you feel sad with them), its the loving description of what happens to make it better that really sticks in my mind. This is a cosy book to read on a cold, wet afternoon in winter with a cup of tea and a bar of chocolate to hand.

Sweet but shrewd story
It's not surprising this is such a classic story. I first read it when I was around nine, and was captivated by all three protagonists. Pauline, Petrova and Posy Fossil are all adopted as babies by Great Uncle Matthew (known as Gum) and sent to live at his house in London, along with his massive collection of fossils. They are looked after by the thoughtful Sylvia and the practical Nana.

The story really begins when the money Gum has sent for the girls' upbringing runs out. Sylvia and Nana don't know how to contact him; they have no idea where he is; there is even some suspicion he may be dead. Then one of the people who boards with them comes up with an idea for the three girls to attend a school of Dance and Acting so that they can earn some money through stage productions. In different ways, their training at the school is the making of all three girls.

Streatfield is careful to make the girls' characters as distinctive as their looks: tall, blonde and beautiful Pauline is interested in English and Drama; Petrova, who is thin and dark, is of a practical frame of mind, good at Maths and Mechanics; while Posy, to whom the shoes of the title belong, has a talent for showing off. The book is truthful about the way sisters interact, their squabbles, the way two band together against one (often it is Pauline and Petrova against Posy, as they try to stop her showing off), how fame can affect young children. There is often a great deal of scrimping and saving, but the girls never let this depress them. As the book draws to a close, Pauline's and Posy's futures become clear, but Petrova's remains uncertain. You wonder what will happen to her; you wonder if Gum will ever appear again.

A great book for all little girls, not just those interested in ballet.