According to KitAges: 14–17 Grades: 9–12 Pages: 216 List Price: 17.95 Cover: Hardcover Published: 9/1/2009 ISBN: 1-59078-474-X ISBN-13: 978-1-59078-474-7 |
If it’s not one thing, it's a mother! Kit’s life is simple—farmwork, school, and dance—until her beloved dance teacher, Ursula, gets sick and her mother decides to homeschool Kit because of an incident at school. Kit doesn’t know how she can possibly deal with her mother, the Lady of Sorrows, and she can’t stand not dancing. The senior students take over giving lessons at the dance studio, giving Kit some respite from her daily struggles with her mother. The arrival of Luis and Clara, professional dancers who will serve as substitutes at the studio, transforms her days and gives her hope. Luis is gorgeous, a brilliant teacher and dancer, and very supportive of Kit, even encouraging her to apply to a special dance school in Montreal and volunteering to take her to the competition and personally introduce her to the director. And that is when Kit’s life gets complicated. Reviews"The coming-of-age conclusion is satisfying, and the descriptions of Kit losing herself in the music as she performs ballet steps will strike a chord with those who love dance." "Doyle has chosen every word carefully, from her descriptions of the frozen Vermont winter, the daily details of farm life, the physicality of dance, the raw emotions of adolescence, and the betrayal of adults. Her characters are complicated and authentic, if not universally likeable; the grownups in particular are often puzzling. Kit’s obsession with ballet and her compulsion to dance at any price will ring true for all teens equally focused on their own talents." |
