Ballet Shoes
Recommended. Age: 9+. A Catholic review of this book for parents.
Our review
A warm, sensible family book about work, money and gifts. Three adopted sisters earn their keep on the stage, and the book treats that as duty to the family, not glamour. Pauline's pride gets corrected and she learns humility. Posy's talent makes her selfish at times, and the book says so. The reservation is small: the stage world is the whole horizon, and God appears only at the edges.
For parents
Read it aloud from 7; independent reading from 9, the Common Sense Media age. Mater Amabilis sets it as a third-grade read-aloud. Ask why Pauline loses her part, and what pride costs her. Ask what Petrova does when her gift is not the family's gift. God gives each of us different talents (CCC 1937).