THE MELTING SEASON

Giselle, daughter of a world-famous ballerina and a dancer in her own right, struggles to reconcile memories of her late father with her current reality. To keep her world in order, Giselle keeps a busy schedule between attending a respected school for the arts in New York City and training as a ballerina on the weekends under her mother’s strict tutelage. After meeting Will, a sensitive and empathetic boy from the suburbs, Giselle’s firm yet tenuous grasp on her life begins to loosen as he challenges her to let go of the past. Clear but disturbing memories of her father’s illness begin to surface as she realizes some long-buried truths about her childhood and gains an appreciation for her mother. Allusions to the ballet about Snegurochka, the Russian Snow Maiden, may be lost on some, but they are beautifully drawn. Additionally, the highly cultured world of Giselle’s family and friends will be foreign to many teen readers; however, this backdrop is original and the characters who play against it are interesting and intelligent. Well-written and urbane. (Fiction. YA)