PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

An Angelina Ballerina beginning reader about the importance of hard work.

When Miss Lilly announces dance partners for the Summer Festival Dance, Angelina is disappointed to be paired with Henry. Despite his best efforts and a clear passion for dance, Henry messes up every step in dance class. But with a little encouragement from Miss Lilly, Angelina helps Henry learn the choreography in time for the festival. Their final performance isn’t quite perfect, but that’s OK because they worked hard and had fun. Fans of Angelina Ballerina, introduced in 1983 by author Holabird and illustrator Helen Craig, will blithely follow the pirouetting mouse through another beginning-reader adventure. The single, simple storyline supports developing readers who are, like Angelina and Henry, practicing a new skill. The text, “based on the stories by Katharine Holabird,” according to the title page, is printed in a large, easy-to-read font with just one to two sentences per page, although sometimes the sentences are a bit long for the target audience. Due to the text’s lack of word repetition, newly independent readers may struggle with challenging new words such as gasped, complained, and encouraged. However, kids who already love Angelina will most likely be motivated to continue reading despite the occasional daunting vocabulary word. Matching Craig’s style, Deas’ illustrations support the text in a clear fashion. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Emergent-reader Angelina Ballerina fans will find much to love, despite obstacles.