In an infectiously rhyming text not a little reminiscent of Madeline, eight little girls ranging in name from Christina and Edwina to Marina and Nina all study ballet in Messina. They dance at school and they dance at the zoo. “They danced at the beach, / in four lines of two.” When a ninth girl named Regina appears at school, mathematical mayhem ensues. Miss Lina elegantly points out the solution and now the girls practice their pliés “in three rows of three.” Author and illustrator have teamed up for a lovely story about friendship, ballet and grouping numbers. The narration plays with sophisticated words and reads aloud with a gentle musical cadence. Davenier’s colorful illustrations are filled with humor, movement and lovely shades of pink. Whether in double-page spreads or tiny vignettes, abundant action is indicated with graceful pink swoops. The little girls, nicely multiethnic, have personality, and young readers, budding ballerinas or not, will enjoy the details of the ballet studio and the joie de vivre of the nine young ladies. (Picture book. 3-6)
