This is a topic that we never have enough for avid readers. This is one that will be a great read aloud and one that fans of ballet will be excited to read.

An absolutely beautiful book that highlights dance and that dancers can come from any background and be of any gender. It was written in an understandable way and the illustrations were absolutely beautiful. A very enjoyable book that I would love to have on the shelves of my classroom library.

What a great children's book for any child interested in starting ballet. With the ballet basics and then some sweet pages that use the basics to present Sleeping Beauty, this was such a fun read.

I loved that when the basics were presented there was a child who could show each position and the basic movements and that each child showed the diversity of people who can become a ballerina.

Beyond reading the ebook, I ordered the physical book for my niece who wants to become quite the ballerina!

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Really wish I woud have been able to read the whole book, most of the pages were blank but since I read things myself before Id read them to kids it wasn't a problem and from what I saw the book is really cute

'Welcome to Ballet School' is a perfect introduction for children interested in ballet! It tells a story with beautiful illustrations and includes multiple pages of instruction regarding positions and stretches. This would be a great book for children starting ballet lessons. I'd recommend this book for children about 4 to 7 years old.

Thank you NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group – Frances Lincoln Children's Books

Practical book with lovely illustrations to teach students about the foundations of ballet. I love the representations of races and genders and the mix of storytelling with practical direction.

Lovely picture book!

This is a beautifully illustrated book that young ballet enthusiasts will love!

Not only the illustrations are beautiful, but the characters are quite diverse. The book is well-written and I believe kids interested in learning ballet or starting to take ballet lessons would find it quite useful and entertaining. There are a lot of very specific descriptions about the five positions and how to combine them.

The book starts kind of like a story book, but it isn't. It doesn't fly as story and it makes a terrible bed time book. It has a lot of text and it's too factual. On the other hand, it is quite fun to use it for play time! You can read the descriptions, look at the pictures, and get your kid to try the positions. It's probably even better for kids who already know how to read so they can try things on their own.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

When I was a child, I absolutely devoured books about ballet like this one. You can definitely tell that the author and illustrator are trying very hard to make ballet look inclusive. Of not only race and ethnicities, but gender. Truth is, ballet is still very divided by gender. There definitely aren’t any boys dancing fairy roles, unless it’s for laughs. I thought the idea of interspersing ballet technique With a bit of a story was a great idea.

Ah, a book about ballet and sports written by a expert in the field (a principal ballerina)! Isn't that so exciting? I know I was pumped reading that in the foreword of this book.

This was quite the throwback to my childhood when I did ballet. Jumping back into ballet and seeing the first, second, third, fourth and fifth positions brought back so many lovely memories. I can easily see young readers loving this book and wanting to do ballet. This felt like an adorable way to introduce ballet and make it fun for young readers.

The illustrations are also adorable and colourful. I highly recommend this for educators and parents who want a sport book that's loads of fun and educational.

Three out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Quarto Publishing and Frances Lincoln Children's Books for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

This was lovely - I wish it had existed when I was little and wanted to be a ballerina! Great for kids in lockdown too, as it actually teaches the first five positions (both feet and arms), as well as a few other basic steps. Educational and fun and with gorgeous illustrations!

A lot more informative than I thought it would be. The story is a good mix of narrative, and vocabulary with great and diverse illustrations for all.

This is a great book for your little one who is interested in ballet. There are many technical terms, and drawings to match. This would be great for a little dancer wanting to learn more about ballet. The book describes a group of novice ballet students arriving on their first day and practicing to prepare for a dance of Sleeping Beauty. I enjoyed that this book spoke more into the art of ballet, and I also appreciated the different genders and races included so that various children would be able to see themselves in this story.

I did feel it was a little lacking in the story element, due to it being more technical.

I was provided an e-arc in exchange for honest review.

I read this book thanks to NetGalley, they provided me a copy for an honest review.
I'm not sure about this book, I was very excited to read this book, because of the cover, the illustrations, and the author. But I think it has a lot of information for a little girl, maybe a young girl with some training will enjoy the most.
Maybe is missing the infant component, more play, and an approach to the kid's world of dance. Otherwise, I really liked the reading, I'm still believing the illustrations are lovely and the book has great potential for people like me with a knowledge of dance and deep love for kids' books.

This is a beautiful book that is an introduction to ballet. It begins with a kind teacher and a diverse group of students. They learn about the clothing/costumes, positions, and vocabulary terms. A ballerina joins the class to teach them about the Sleeping Beauty ballet. The children are encouraged to choose a favorite costume for a show for parents.

The illustrations are wonderfully done. Each position is explained in kid friendly terms with diagrams. There is a glossary to refer to for definitions.

I would recommend this book for units on performance arts or for a student who wants to learn more about the ballet.

Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a detailed sophisticated book for young readers on introducing Ballet., tiny steps to preparing for an recital. Amazing book in depth and scope for young readers. The book also introduces the technical terms to the readers with short definitions. Illustrations featuring young dancers makes the material accessible and interesting to young readers. An engaging title for the youngest readers, recommended for all dance lovers.

This was a super cute children’s book about a day in a ballet class. I loved that multiple races and genders were portrayed. The ballet definitions were beneficial and informative. The tale of sleeping beauty almost felt like a separate book to me, but overall this was a great read for the ballet obsessed in every child.

I am not sure about this book. It is very informative and the illustrations are beautiful but I do not know many children who would read the entire book. It reads like an elementary textbook with lots of information, vocabulary, and diagrams. I think most of my elementary students would bypass it. It would be the perfect gift for a dance school student. I do, however, really appreciate the inclusive nature of the book - boys and girls, with all different colors and names.

This is a really nice book that features key moves and terms from ballet in a way that is easy to understand. I love how well made the illustrations work to back them up, and that this both have a story but also works as a manual on how to start doing ballet! Really good representation too!

Welcome to ballet school is basically year one of ballet training in a cute, illustrated book. I was classically trained for twelve years, and I even learned a thing or two. As a young ballerina, we learned the French terms and what you were supposed to do when you hear them, but we didn’t always go over their direct translations, at least not that I can remember, so seeing a few new things in a sea of nostalgia was actually really cool.

I would recommend using this book as a training tool for teaching kids something new, rather than as a go-to for storytime. It’s intense in a good way, but it’s not designed to read through in one sitting. I would get the most enjoyment out of maybe on page per day and then having kiddos follow the instructions, and bonus points for doing it with them, like taking a day to learn the five positions, and another day for the barre exercises.

There’s a lot of absorb in this book, and it holds great “replay value” for those of us who are gaming nerds. You will be able to revisit again and again and help your children learn the basics of ballet. After all, ballet is for everyone, tall or short, large or small, young or old, everyone can benefit from learning and practicing ballet.

First of all, thank you very much to NetGalley for the copy to make the review.


The edition (I have read it digitally) is beautiful. At first sight it looks like just another illustrated story for kids. The truth is that everyone can enjoy the book, regardless of age. The fact of finding very different dancers among the students has enchanted me. It seems to me of utmost importance to introduce multicultural dancers to books that are mainly dedicated to children.

In this book we can find the different ways to create a dance, movements, positions and many other things related to ballet. It is a perfect book for someone who is starting out in the world of ballet.