Bunheads

Title: Bunheads

Author: Sophie Flack

Year: 2011

Genre: Realistic fiction

Age: 8th grade up

Summary: On-stage beauty. Backstage drama.

As a dancer with the ultra-prestigious Manhattan Ballet Company, nineteen-year-old Hannah Ward juggles intense rehearsals, dazzling performances and complicated backstage relationships. Up until now, Hannah has happily devoted her entire life to ballet.
But when she meets a handsome musician named Jacob, Hannah's universe begins to change, and she must decide if she wants to compete against the other "bunheads" in the company for a star soloist spot or strike out on her own in the real world. Does she dare give up the gilded confines of the ballet for the freedoms of everyday life?

Text from sophieflack.com


Review: The best parts of this book: descriptions of the ballet, rehearsal time, secondary characters. Annoying part: Hannah obviously being a thinly disguised version of the author. The author writes Hannah as though she’s talking to an earlier version of herself, warning her about what’s to come. The dance parts shine, but one has to wonder if Flack will be able to write anything other than a ballet book about herself.

I recommend this book to realistic fiction lovers, dancers.