A DANCER'S WORLD: An Introduction for Parents and Students

Though the publishers recommend this for readers aged twelve up, all of Part I--which includes Fonteyn's advice on early training and choosing schools and teachers, plus her mother's recollections of her daughter's early study--is addressed to parents of younger children and will be off-putting to the students themselves. (""Children . . . have such restless little minds. . . ."") However, beginning dancers or those seriously considering lessons can profit from the remaining sections which offer sound, businesslike briefings--presented with crisp enthusiasm--on the different types of dance (ballet, modern, show, folk, etc.) and what is involved in ballet and modern dance classes; on what is required of a dancer and what it's like to belong to a company; and on other related matters such as choreography and ballet for athletes. With the Fonteyn name and the exploding interest in dance going for it, this is one advice book that is likely to move.