Ages: 8-14
Siena begins her dance journey in Puerto Rico, where she is diagnosed with flat feet. She started dance classes and fell in love. Her family moves to Boston where she sees a ballet performance for the first time. She dreams of becoming a ballerina. At the age of eleven, she auditions and wins a spot in the School of American Ballet located in New York. Her family once again moves, this time to New York. Siena begins to work hard, dedicating a lot of time to dance. As her home life grows unpleasant with her parents divorcing, Siena’s time with ballet becomes even more precious to her. Read about Siena’s life as a ballerina in To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel.
Before reading To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel, I was not familiar with graphic novels. I found the book somewhat difficult to read, because I was not familiar with the layout. I personally would not choose to read a graphic novel again. However, this was a good book. I enjoyed that the book was a memoir. I liked the format of this story. It allows the reader to move through the years with Siena. The illustrations also depict this. As the years pass, the color of Siena’s leotard changes. Each color represents a higher level at the School of American Ballet. The writing works in many details of Siena’s life. The writing and the illustrations work together well. The illustrations throughout the book are simple and cartoon-like. They are very detailed. The emotions of the characters can be seen, from joy, nervousness, pain, and sadness. We see the excitement and glamour of performance, along with the hard work of practice. I like that the book opens with Siena dancing on a beach, and the book ends on a beach also. It is a great way to tie the whole book together. Overall, To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel was a great book that anyone who likes dance or ballerinas, and enjoy graphic novels, will enjoy.
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