Beautiful Ballerina is a poem written in second person and highlights the composition, grace, power, and hard work required for success in ballet. The real-life illustrations portray four African American dancers from the Dance Theatre of Harlem, which celebrates the beauty of diversity in dance. This is a good read for those aspiring to become a ballerina. For those that unfamiliar with dance, the vocabulary and language might be difficult to understand, and there is no glossary. Therefore, I give this book three and a half stars. ( )

Nelson's poem hilights the beauty, strength and resilience of African American ballet dancers, while Kuklin's photographs feature four ballerinas of varying age. An important book for helping students of all races and cultures understand that the arts are not just by and for white people. ( )

With beautiful pictures and beautiful words, Beautiful Ballerina presents the beautiful story of those who dance at the Dance Theatre of Harlem. The text is concise and the photographs used to illustrate the text eloquently depict the beautiful movement that is ballet. In a word: beautiful.A little:“To the traditions of port de bras and arabesque, of pirouettes,jetes, and pas de deux, you bring a tiny hint of Africanness, juju and beautiful joy danced in your every move. Beautiful ballerina, you are the dance.” ( )