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The Sleeping Beauty (Book) Review

 
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At a Glance...
 

Page Count: 48
 
Genre:
 
Author:
 
Year Published:
 
Final Score
 
 
 
 
 
3.5/ 5


User Rating
1 total rating

 

We liked?


A classic tale, told in a different way.

Not so much?


Doesn't seem to hold the interest of younger children as well; appeals more to 6+.


Final Fiendish Findings?

The pictures and story in The Sleeping Beauty are perhaps more suited to older children than young, yet they are well suited to introducing your children to the worlds of ballet and art. With an old world style and a story kids can relate to, a life in the theater seems only a page turn away.

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Posted September 16, 2013 by

 
Full Fiendish Findings...
 
 

“A Journey to the Ballet of the Mariinsky Theatre”

The Sleeping Beauty is a story of a little girl, Lena-Gabrielle, who loves ballet more than anything. Set in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1890, it is Sleeping Beauty in a way you’ve never seen.

On Christmas Eve, little Lena-Gabrielle has just opened her gifts. Her very favorite is a ballerina doll, dressed in a beautiful costume and satin slippers. As she plays with her doll, she hears the adults around her discussing the next day’s long anticipated performance of The Sleeping Beauty at the Mariinsky Theatre. Though the tickets are long sold out, Lena-Gabrielle is determined that she will see the show, and sets out the next day to make it happen. With a little help from some fixtures of the city, she is soon met with Mr. Tchaikovsky himself, who has written the music for the performance and promises to introduce Lena-Gabrielle to the ballet master and the theater. As she steps onto the stage, readers are led into the tale of The Sleeping Beauty, adapted to match the Mariinsky version.

While the story of Sleeping Beauty is no doubt familiar to us all, this version varies enough from the Disney tale we all grew up with to make it seem like a story both old and new. There are fairy godmothers and spiky spindles and, of course, a breathtakingly beautiful princess to steal the hearts of all. The old fairy Carabosse, insulted at not being invited to the princess’ banquet, curses her to die from the prick of a spindle. While that death is indeed avoided by the quick thinking of a kind fairy, Aurora is instead doomed to sleep for one hundred years, hopefully to be awakened by true love’s kiss.

The illustrations in The Sleeping Beauty are really quite different from those you would find in most children’s books, resembling more a piece of fine art than pictures for children. The illustrations were created by Russina artist Nikita Polyansky, who was inspired by the ballet as originally performed in 1890. As such, the costumes are exquisitely Victorian, with an old world feel that really fits well with the theme of the book. Children are transported to a colorful and fantastical world that is well suited to the ballet.

The pictures and story in The Sleeping Beauty are perhaps more suited to older children than young, yet they are well suited to introducing your children to the worlds of ballet and art. With an old world style and a story kids can relate to, a life in the theater seems only a page turn away.


Amy

 
U.S. Senior Editor & Deputy EIC, @averyzoe on Twitter, mother of 5, gamer, reader, wife to @macanthony, and all-around bad-ass (no, not really)


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