E.T.A. Hoffmann

Maurice Sendak

“A classic, new and complete. One of the ten best illustrated children’s books of the year.” — New York Times Book Review

The tale of Nutcracker, written by E.T.A. Hoffmann in 1816, has fascinated and inspired artists, composers, and audiences for almost two hundred years. It has retained its freshness because it appeals to the sense of wonder we all share.

Maurice Sendak designed brilliant sets and costumes for the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Christmas production of Nutcracker and created even more magnificent pictures especially for this book. He joined with the eminent translator Ralph Manheim to produce this illustrated edition of Hoffmann’s wonderful tale, destined to become a classic for all ages.

The world of Nutcracker is a world of pleasures. Maurice Sendak’s art illuminates the delights of Hoffmann’s story in this rich and tantalizing treasure.

Nutcracker

Jennifer Adams

Alison Oliver

BabyLit(R) is a fashionable way to introduce your baby to the world of classic literature With this colorfully illustrated board book version of the classic Christmas-time ballet, Jennifer Adams and Alison Oliver present a new holiday favorite, The Nutcracker: A BabyLit(R) Dancing Primer. This board book features soldiers marching, mice prancing, snowflakes swirling, dolls bending, and buffoons skipping as a way to introduce basic movement terms to babies and toddlers. Jennifer Adams is the author of many books including Remarkably Jane: Notable Quotations on Jane Austen and the popular Edgar the Raven series. Jennifer works as a writer and editor in Salt Lake City, Utah. Alison Oliver runs Sugar design studio. Her design portfolio includes everything from logos to packaging and product design for clients such as Chronicle Books, Citibabes, and Aerie. She lives in New York.

The Nutcracker: A BabyLit Dancing Primer

Patrick Regan

Natasha Kuricheva

Experience the magic of Tchaikovsky’s classic tale with this lavishly illustrated keepsake book. The Nutcracker is a magical story beloved by generations of children. Follow along as enchanted toys spring to life, dancers glide and twirl, and a little girl learns that kindness is the greatest gift of all. This familiar and charming tale combines with Natasha Kuricheva’s lavishly painted illustrations to create a keepsake book for the whole family to enjoy.

The Nutcracker

Debra DeVoe

Karel Hayes

Hang onto your hats as you whirl through the magical Super Time Tunnel with the Ballet Busters and their beloved dance teacher, Miss Sophia. Meet Marti, Julie, Zack, and Luis as they travel back 100 years to St. Petersburg, Russia, just in time for the very first Nutcracker performance. What an amazing journey these young dancers experience — learning about the history of the ballet, battling bullies, and creating chaos onstage and off. Will Marti regain her BFF’s trust? Will she ever have a role bigger than a Little Mouse?

Ballet Busters Leap into the First Nutcracker (A Dancing Doorways Academy Series) (Volume 1)

Chris Barton

Cathy Gendron

Every December, The Nutcracker comes to life in theaters all across the United States. But how did this 19th-century Russian ballet become such a big part of the holidays in 21st-century America? Meet Willam, Harold, and Lew Christensen, three small-town Utah boys who caught the ballet bug in the early 1900s. They performed on vaudeville and took part in the New York City dance scene. Russian immigrants shared the story of The Nutcracker with them, and during World War II, they staged their own Christmastime production in San Francisco. It was America’s first full-length version and the beginning of a delightful holiday tradition.

The Nutcracker Comes to America: How Three Ballet-Loving Brothers Created a Holiday Tradition

E.T.A. Hoffman

Sanna Annukka

Hoffmann’s classic Christmas fairy tale, immortalized by Tchaikovsky’s ballet, is brought to life by the gorgeous contemporary artwork of Finnish illustrator Sanna Annukka, and is the perfect holiday gift for adults and children alike. The Nutcracker captures, better than any other story, a child’s wonder at Christmas. On Christmas Eve, Fritz and Marie excitedly await the arrival of Godfather Drosselmeier and the marvelous gifts he brings for them every year. When Marie discovers a rather curious nutcracker doll amongst the presents, she suddenly finds herself caught up in an age-old battle and ultimately transported to a magical world of sugar-frosted castles, chocolate kings, and true love. This cloth-bound edition combines the charm of Hoffmann’s original eighteenth-century tale with the freshness of Sanna Annukka’s gorgeous illustrations in this striking keepsake edition that will be treasured and reread by you and your loved ones for years to come.

Arkady Roytman

Publishing just in time for the forthcoming 2018 film adaptation, this edition of The Nutcracker is sure to enchant readers young and old. On Christmas Eve, seven-year-old Marie and her eight-year-old brother Fritz anxiously await their Christmas gifts. When their godfather—a clock builder and toymaker—arrives, he unveils an ornate clockwork castle adorned with whirling figurines for the children. While Fritz plays with the clock, Marie is taken aside and given another gift—a nutcracker. After Fritz grabs the nutcracker from Marie and breaks its jaw by cracking too many nuts, their playtime ends and they head off to bed. When the clock strikes twelve, magic makes its way into this enduring tale and an epic battle ensues. This timeless classic, featuring all-new full-color and black-and-white illustrations by artist Arkady Roytman and abridged text by Gina Gold, is the perfect story to get anyone in the holiday spirit!

The Nutcracker: The Original Holiday Classic

Dan Taylor

Fiona Watt

Push, pull, and slide into the holiday magic of The Nutcracker! Bring the classic Nutcracker story to life by pulling the tabs, spinning the wheels, and sliding the characters in First Stories: The Nutcracker. Join Clara and the Nutcracker as they go on a magical journey in this beloved tale based on the beautiful ballet. With movements on every page, youngsters will love this engaging introduction to the holiday classic.

The Nutcracker (Musical Books)

Stephanie Spinner

Peter Malone

Christmas just isn’t Christmas without The Nutcracker! This beautiful book, which includes a fully orchestrated CD of the score, invites children to dance, prance, and relive the ballet long after the tree comes down. Peter Malone’s exquisite illustrations capture all the magic of The Nutcracker’s most memorable scenes: the Christmas Eve party, Godfather Drosselmeyer’s spellbinding visit, and the ferocious battle between the Mouse King and the Nutcracker. Marie’s journey to the Land of Sweets, where the Sugar Plum Fairy welcomes her with exuberant dancers from around the globe—and toothsome desserts—springs to life as never before. Stephanie Spinner’s lyrical text, Peter Malone’s jewel-like artwork, and a sparkling performance of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s unforgettable music make this a gift to inspire even the very youngest dancer.

Deborah Hautzig

Diane Goode

Celebrate the season with one of the most beloved holiday stories of all-time, The Story of the Nutcracker Ballet. The perfect addition to your Christmastime! Featuring glorious illustrations by Caldecott Honor-winner, Diane Goode, this beautiful and adventurous classic tale will dance its way into your family’s holiday traditions for years to come.

The Story of the Nutcracker Ballet

Vladimir Vagin

This beautifully illustrated adaptation of the Nutcracker delivers timeless magic and wonder right to your fingertips. A paperback edition offers front-row tickets to this beloved holiday tradition. It’s Christmas Eve in 19th century Europe. And on this magical evening, young Clara’s eccentric godfather has given her a beautiful wooden nutcracker. As midnight strikes, Clara’s wooden toy transforms into a handsome prince, and Christmas quickly becomes even more enchanting. The prince takes Clara on a romantic overnight adventure into a dream world of delicacies called the Land of Sweets. Clara’s adventure ends as she wakes up snuggly tucked in her bed. As she embraces her nutcracker, she realizes that the best part of Christmas…is the magic it brings.

The Nutcracker Ballet

St. Simon

Sometimes you just want to have the original. This is one of the earliest known English translation of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s classic children’s tale, “Nutcracker and Mouse-King,’ which was penned in German in 1816. While Alexandre Dumas, père was making this story famous in France, this translation by Mrs. St. Simon was making it popular in the English-speaking world. The stage was set for Tchaikovsky to bring the story into the 20th century in his famous ballet. This edition carefully re-constructs the text of the 1853 edition, and also includes the original woodcut illustrations that accompanied it. At Christmas, you want to read aloud to your children the same stories that delighted countless other children over the decades and centuries over the holidays. If that is what you’re looking for, this edition is for you. Or, if you just trying to fathom what on earth Tchaikovsky is portraying in his ballet, reading an early English translation that aimed to be faithful to the original is a great start.

The Nutcracker: The Original 1853 Edition With Illustrations

Rita Balducci

Sheilah Beckett

A Christmas classic returns to Little Golden Books, with beautiful new artwork by a beloved Golden Books illustrator! The Nutcracker is back in print as a Little Golden Book, with all-new illustrations by Sheilah Beckett, who started illustrating Golden Books in the 1950s. This lovely retelling of the famous ballet will be a perfect holiday gift for any child who loves the ballet, Christmas stories, and fairy tales!

The Nutcracker (Little Golden Book)

Gennady Spirin

Aliana Brodmann

On Christmas Eve, Marie Stahlbaum huddles in the dark with her brother, Fritz, waiting for the Christ Child to come. When their parents open the doors to the parlor, the scene that awaits them is mesmerizing: a Christmas tree aglow with candles and more toys than they could have imagined. Godfather Drosselmeir has made them a fine castle with dancing ladies and leaping men, a clever toy fox, and battalions of soldiers. But Marie falls in love when she finds the one last gift tucked under the tree - the Nutcracker

Barron's Editorial Staff

Roberta Pagnoni

Laura Rigo

Barron’s Little People Shape Books feature simply told stories that are perfect for beginning readers, or for reading aloud to preschoolers. Cut into the shapes of their main characters, these rugged and appealing board books are sure to delight little readers. In Nutcracker, children discover the beloved holiday tale of a little girl named Marie who receives a wooden Nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. She soon discovers that an evil Mouse King has cast a spell on him! Can Marie save her beloved Nutcracker?

The Nutcracker (Little People Shape Books)

Alexandre Dumas

Else Hasselris

Based on the classic Christmas story by E. T. A. Hoffmann, The Nutcracker of Nuremberg is the magical adventure of Marie Stahlbaum’s favourite toy, the Nutcracker, who battles the nefarious Mouse King in battle and takes the reader on a wonderful adventure, into a magical land of dolls. Dumas’s version was adapted by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky into the famous ballet The Nutcracker. Contents include: Part I: The Story of the Nutcracker of Nuremberg, Part II: The Story of the Nut Krakatuk and the Princess Pirlipate, and Part III: The Story of Marie and the King of the Toys. This wonderful story is accompanied by the beautiful silhouettes cut by Else Hasselriis. Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870) was a famous French writer. He is best remembered for his exciting romantic sagas, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo. Despite making a great deal of money from his writing, Dumas was almost perpetually penniless thanks to his extravagant lifestyle. His novels have since been translated into nearly a hundred different languages, and have inspired over two hundred motion pictures. Pook Press celebrates the great ‘Golden Age of Illustration’ in children’s classics and fairy tales- a period of unparalleled excellence in book illustration. We publish rare and vintage Golden Age illustrated books, in high-quality editions, so that the masterful artwork and story-telling can continue to delight both young and old.

The Nutcracker of Nuremberg

Janet Schulman

Renee Graef

Each December, generations of children delight in the ballet version of the quintessential Christmas story The Nutcracker. But few have had the opportunity to revel in the richly detailed original tale. Now, in this glorious new edition, acclaimed children’s book author and editor Janet Schulman returns to the source’E.T.A. Hoffmann’s “The Nutcracker and the King of Mice.” Here we meet Marie, her Nutcracker, the Sugar Plum Fairy, and all the other delightful characters, and we discover the answers to questions left unanswered by the ballet, like why the Nutcracker and the King of Mice were enemies.

Susan Adrian

Christmastime, ballet, and magic! An original take on The Nutcracker ballet! Georgie has waited for this moment her whole life—to dance the part of Clara in The Nutcracker ballet. And when she finally gets the part, it’s like a dream come true. . . . Literally. Every time Georgie dances with the Nutcracker doll, she leaves the ballet studio and enters a world where everything around her—the old wooden furniture, the Christmas tree, the carefully wrapped presents—is larger than life. It’s so magical, Georgie can’t wait to return again and again. Then the Nutcracker’s magic seeps into the real world, putting Georgie’s friend in danger. Everything is falling apart, and it’s almost Christmas! Can Georgie save her friend, the Nutcracker, and most of all, herself?

Nutcracked

Susan Jeffers

New York Times bestselling artist and Caldecott Honor winner Susan Jeffers has created a Nutcracker as only she can—with lavish illustrations, magnificent detail, a glitter-brushed cover, and enchanting holiday scenes on every page. This is The Nutcracker as you’ve never seen it before! Makes a lovely keepsake and gift. Join Marie, Fritz, and the intriguing Nutcracker himself on a magical Christmas Eve adventure. Behold the frightful Mouse King, the elegant Sugar Plum fairies, and the entire Land of Sweets in this dazzling, gorgeously illustrated holiday classic. With spare text based on the story in the ballet, this book offers a front-row seat to the enthralling tale that is a perennial favorite of adults and children alike. And for Susan Jeffers fans looking for extra content, an author’s note is included at the end of the book, in which she explains what inspired her to turn this holiday tradition into a show-stopping picture book.

First Stories: The Nutcracker

Don Daily

Adults as well as children look forward to attending an annual performance of The Nutcracker. To sweeten the anticipation and prolong the joy – or just to establish a lovely tradition–settle in with this charming retelling of a young girl’s dreamy visit to the Land of the Sugarplum Fairy. The story is enhanced with magnificent color illustrations created especially for this edition by the late award-winning artist Don Daily. This high-quality, handsomely produced volume is destined for the permanent home library.

Robert Ingpen

Marie kept gazing at the dear little man, whom she had loved at first sight, and she saw what a kind face he had. His pale-green, slightly protuberant eyes expressed nothing but friendliness and goodwill. And the neat white cotton-wool beard on his chin suited the little man very well, setting off the sweet smile of his bright-red mouth. The Nutcracker and the Mouse King is well-loved by many as the inspiration for Tchaikovsky’s famous ballet, performed as a Christmas spectacle the world over. The ballet was based on a French retelling of the story, and Hoffmann’s German original is rarely translated in its entirety. In addition to telling the familiar tale of the gentle young girl and her love for the enchanted Nutcracker, who leads the toy soldiers in a battle against the wicked Mouse King and whisks her away to the Land of Toys, the original text also includes the story of the cursed Princess Pirlipat and the hard nut, which explains the background of how the poor Nutcracker came to be. This sumptuous volume, published to celebrate the bicentenary of the tale’s first publication, brings together the complete, unabridged German classic in a new translation by the eminent translator Anthea Bell, with more than 70 breathtaking illustrations by the award-winning artist Robert Ingpen.

The Nutcracker and the Mouse King

Courtney Acampora

The Ballerina of the Realms dances on every page of this magical book! From Disney’s all-new live action film The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, follow the elegant Ballerina of the Realms as she dances center stage in this artistic pop-up book, celebrating each of the unique and picturesque Four Realms. This beautiful format is a perfect holiday gift for fans of this classic tale, full of colorful characters and no shortage of surprises.

Disney The Nutcracker and the Four Realms: A Center Stage Pop-Up Book

Joan Holub

Daniel Roode

historical figures

female role models

Learn all about influential women who changed history in this engaging and colorful board book perfect for trailblazers-in-training!

Paving the way
to a future that’s bright.
Helping the world
with their skills, smarts, and might. 

Little trailblazers cause great big changes.

In this follow up to This Little President and This Little Explorer, now even the youngest readers can learn all about great and empowering female trailblazers in history! Highlighting ten memorable women leaders who paved the way, parents and little ones alike will love this girl power primer full of fun, age-appropriate facts and bold illustrations.

This Little Trailblazer: A Girl Power Primer

Joan Sweeney

Leslie Wu

Three little kittens create a sensation when they join dancers onstage of a Parisian theater known for its ballet and for the artist who paints there.

Bijou, Bonbon and Beau

Nick Denchfield

Sue Scullard

Explore the world of the Nutcracker through five spectacular pop-up scenes full of lift-the-flap surprises.

Children can open the pop-up presents, watch the midnight battle between the mice and the toy soldiers (with the tallest pop-up Christmas tree youve ever seen) then join Clara on her sleigh ride to the Land of Sweets. Sue Scullards astonishingly detailed illustration, combined with Nick Denchfield`s miraculous pop-up scenes, make this the most magical NUTCRACKER ever.

The Nutcracker : A Pop-Up Book for Christmas

Calliope Glass

Marco Bucci

Misty Copeland

With breathtaking painterly illustrations, a deeply enchanting story, and a foreword written by celebrated dancer Misty Copeland, this picture book brings The Nutcracker and the Four Realms to life in a brand-new way. As the adventure from the film jumps off of the screen and onto the page, a new generation of readers and fans will be drawn in and enchanted by the holiday spirit, the beauty of dance, and the magic of storytelling.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms: The Dance of the Realms

Usborne Publishing

One magical Christmas night, a little girl’s Nutcracker doll comes to life! Peep through the pages to follow their adventures in this enchanting book, with delicate cutaways, flaps to lift and stunning illustrations from Karl James Mountford. A beautiful way to introduce children to the classic fairytale.

Peep Inside A Fairy Tale The Nutcracker

New York City Ballet

Valeria Docampo

In this stunning follow-up to the bestselling holiday classic The Nutcracker, The New York City Ballet presents another timeless tale for a modern ballet lover with The Sleeping Beauty. The New York City Ballet presents classic stories of the ballet with their trademark stylish, modern sensibility. This lavishly illustrated book follows the storyline, choreography, costumes, and sets of the New York City Ballet’s production of The Sleeping Beauty. With beautiful art illustrated by Valeria Docampo, this magnificent retelling is a perfect gift for an aspiring ballerina or any family who wants to add this enchanting fairy tale classic to their library.

The Sleeping Beauty

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley 

R.W. Alley

After seeing a ballet performance, Nate decides he wants to learn ballet but he has doubts when his brother Ben tells him that only girls can be ballerinas.

Ballerino Nate

Jan Berenstain

Mike Berenstain

It’s Christmas morning, and Santa has left the Berenstain Bears a special gift—a nutcracker! At first the cubs are more interested in their new video game, electronic toy, and Bearbie movie. But when they put the presents away and put their imaginations to use, the fun really starts. Join the Bears as they act out their own version of The Nutcracker!

The Berenstain Bears and the Nutcracker

ballet

the nutcracker

Now available in a beautiful board book edition, the New York City Ballet presents a classic ballet tale for a modern ballet lover with George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, a holiday favorite. The New York City Ballet is known for showcasing classic stories of the ballet with their trademark stylish and modern sensibility. For the first time, this beloved holiday story is told based on George Balanchine’s quintessential production. The storyline of this gorgeous board book mimics the choreography of the famous ballet and the illustrations are inspired by the backdrops and scenery from the actual production. The New York City Ballet’s production of the Nutcracker is considered to be “the” leading production in the world. A holiday tradition for many families, now readers who can’t travel to New York will be able to experience this celebratory story. A must-have for every aspiring ballerina’s library and a holiday keepsake for every family’s bookshelf.

Kristyn Crow

Molly Schaar Idle

A young zombie gives a haunting performance in her first ballet dance recital.

Zombelina

Mary Engelbreit

Marie, the Nutcracker Prince, and the Sugar Plum Fairy will enchant readers in this freshly imagined holiday classic by New York Times bestseller Mary Engelbreit, now in paper-over-board format for the first time. On Christmas Eve, Marie receives a wooden nutcracker from her beloved uncle. Then something magical happens . . . her toy nutcracker transforms into a handsome prince and whisks Marie off to the fantastical Toyland on a winter adventure she’ll never forget. Mary Engelbreit’s delightful interpretation of the timeless Christmas story makes this Nutcracker truly beautiful to behold.

Mary Engelbreit's Nutcracker

Anna Pavlova

Edgar Degas

Every girl remembers her first trip to the ballet: the anticipation beforehand, the orchestra’s first notes, the ethereal beauty of the ballerinas. This is a tale of one such girl who was caught up in ballet’s mesmerizing spell and became one of the greatest ballerinas of all time.

In a story drawn from her memoirs, Anna Pavlova describes her first visit to the ballet to see the Sleeping Beauty. With simple, childlike language, she captures her love for her mother, the splendor of the ballet, and the moments that changed her life. The words are matched with paintings, pastels, and drawings of the French Impressionist Edgar Degas, to give this story all the magic of a fairytale.

Complete with short biographies of Pavlova and Degas, I Dreamed I Was a Ballerina will delight any child with ballerina dreams.

I Dreamed I was a Ballerina

Laurel Snyder

Julie Morstad

“Spare, poetic words sit as lightly as snowflakes.”—Wall Street Journal “An enchanting glimpse of a dancer whose name has come to be synonymous with her most famous role.”—School Library Journal, starred review One night, young Anna’s mother takes her to the ballet, and everything is changed. So begins the journey of a girl who will one day grow up to be the most famous prima ballerina of all time, inspiring legions of dancers after her: the brave, the generous, the transcendently gifted Anna Pavlova. Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova is a heartbreakingly beautiful picture book biography perfect for aspiring ballerinas of all ages.

Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova

Kristy Dempsey

Floyd Cooper

Little ballerinas have big dreams. Dreams of pirouettes and grande jetes, dreams of attending the best ballet schools and of dancing starring roles on stage. But in Harlem in the 1950s, dreams don’t always come true—they take a lot of work and a lot of hope. And sometimes hope is hard to come by.

But the first African-American prima ballerina, Janet Collins, did make her dreams come true. And those dreams inspired ballerinas everywhere, showing them that the color of their skin couldn’t stop them from becoming a star.

In a lyrical tale as beautiful as a dance en pointe, Kristy Dempsey and Floyd Cooper tell the story of one little ballerina who was inspired by Janet Collins to make her own dreams come true.

A Dance Like Starlight

Christopher Myers

In her debut picture book, Misty Copeland tells the story of a young girl–an every girl–whose confidence is fragile and who is questioning her own ability to reach the heights that Misty has reached. Misty encourages this young girl’s faith in herself and shows her exactly how, through hard work and dedication, she too can become Firebird.

Lyrical and affecting text paired with bold, striking illustrations that are some of Caldecott Honoree Christopher Myers’s best work, makes Firebird perfect for aspiring ballerinas everywhere.

Firebird

Lea Lyon

Alexandria LaFaye

Jessica Gibson

An inspiring picture book for little ballerinas everywhere!

Ready to Fly is the true story of Sylvia Townsend, an African American girl who falls in love with ballet after seeing Swan Lake on TV.

Although there aren’t many ballet schools that will accept a girl like Sylvia in the 1950s, her local bookmobile provides another possibility. A librarian helps Sylvia find a book about ballet and the determined seven-year-old, with the help of her new books, starts teaching herself the basics of classical ballet.

Soon Sylvia learns how to fly—how to dance—and how to dare to dream.

Lyrical, easy-to-read, and affecting text paired with bright, appealing illustrations make Ready to Fly perfect for aspiring ballerinas everywhere who are ready to leap and to spread their wings.

Includes a foreword from Sylvia Townsend, a brief history of the bookmobile, an author’s note, and a further reading list.

Ready to Fly: How Sylvia Townsend Became the Bookmobile Ballerina

Jane O'Connor

Robin Preiss Glasser

What starts out as dancing school just for Dad quickly turns into a ballet class for Nancy’s whole family. Fans of Fancy Nancy will delight in learning to plié, pirouette, and jeté with Nancy as she demonstrates all of the positions she’s learned in ballet class. From the New York Times bestselling team Jane O’Connor and Robin Preiss Glasser, who have entertained millions of girls and boys with the Fancy Nancy series.

Fancy Nancy: Budding Ballerina

Debbie Allen

Kadir Nelson

Sassy tries out for a summer dance festival in Washington, D.C., despite the other girls’ taunts that she is much too tall.

Dancing in the Wings

Amy Novesky

Sara Gillingham

This beautifully designed and playfully illustrated novelty board book is the perfect starting point for tiny ballerinas and parents alike. Sweet and spare rhymes prance across the pages, engaging the reader with real ballet terms and plenty of pink. Parents and toddlers together will sigh Bravo as they turn off the light.

Love Is a Tutu

Lisbeth Zwerger

In this retelling of the original 1816 German story, Godfather Drosselmeier gives young Marie a nutcracker for Christmas, and she finds herself in a magical realm where she saves a boy from an evil curse.

Marilyn Singer

Alexandra Boiger

It’s summer, and Tallulah is excited about going to dance camp. She’ll get to take plenty of ballet classes. She’ll have to take tap, too, and she’s NOT excited about that. She’s never taken tap before, so she’ll be a beginning beginner. And she’s right—tap class is not much fun. Plus there’s a girl her same age who’s maddeningly good at tap dancing. But that same girl isn’t very good at ballet . . . could it be that she and Tallulah have something in common?

Tallulah's Tap Shoes

Katharine Holabird

Helen Craig

Angelina is a pretty little mouse who wants nothing more than to be a ballerina. She dances all the time—at home, at school, even in her dreams! In fact, she’s so busy dancing that she forgets all about the other things she’s supposed to do, like cleaning her room and joining her family for breakfast! Her parents don’t know what to do—especially after her arabesques in the kitchen knock over the milk! Then one day they come up with an idea that will change Angelina’s life forever… With Katharine Holabird’s lively writing and Helen Craig’s charming illustrations, the original story, now refreshed and re-released, will continue keeping a whole new generation of young ballerinas leaping with delight.

Angelina Ballerina

Barbara Newman

Gil Tomblin

In story and illustrations, presents five classic ballets: Giselle, Coppelia, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and Swan Lake. Includes photographs from Royal Ballet productions, and is accompanied by an audio CD.

The Illustrated Book of Ballet Stories

Angela C Santomero

Alexandra Cassel

Jason Fruchter

A new generation of children love Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, inspired by the classic series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood! The show must go on as Daniel Tiger and his friends dance the Nutcracker ballet in this adorable board book with a padded cover and holographic foil! It’s the perfect stocking stuffer for Daniel Tiger fans! Daniel Tiger can’t wait to see his friends Katerina Kittycat and Prince Wednesday perform together in the Nutcracker Ballet! But when he arrives at the Enchanted Garden, Daniel learns that Prince Wednesday is sick and can’t dance! Can Daniel step in and save the show?

Daniel and the Nutcracker (Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood)

Elise Gravel

Ada hates everything about ballet class, yet she still has to go! Arabesques? Grotesque! And then one Saturday, Ada pliés right out the door and into the hallway, smacking into someone who thinks her ungraceful moves are great! In the tradition of Kevin Henkes’s Lilly books and Russell and Lillian Hoban’s Frances classics, Ada is a plucky little kid with her own way of thinking. Through Ada’s stubbornness and emotional honesty, author/illustrator Elise Gravel shows her understanding of how kids feel and why. She shows us that anger is normal and feeling our emotions leads to growth! This short, funny, energetic book—full of word bubbles that enhance visual literacy and Gravel’s signature vibrant illustrations—is a great choice for both reading aloud and reading independently for emergent readers. Children who love ballet—and definitely those who don’t—will delight in this clever, subversive tale about a kid who has to do what she doesn’t like in order to discover what she loves.

The Cranky Ballerina

Laurence Anholt

Young Marie wants to be a ballerina, but her parents have no money for lessons. She must earn what little money she can as an artist’s model at a ballet school. Then, her life takes an unusual turn when she models for the famous sculptor, Edgar Degas.This is a title in Barron’s Anholt’s Artists Books for Children series, in which author and illustrator Laurence Anholt recalls memorable and sometimes amusing moments when the lives of the artists were touched by children. Anholt’s fine illustrations appear on every page and include reproductions of works by the artists.

Degas and the Little Dancer

Megan Maynor

Rosalinde Bonnet

Ella and Penguin are best friends. So it only makes sense that they like all the same things. But Ella loves tutus. Penguin does not. Ella loves finger painting. Penguin does not. Oh no! They don’t match! They must not be friends after all. Then again, maybe Ella and Penguin don’t need to like all the same things to love being friends. An irresistible follow-up to Ella and Penguin Stick Together!

Top 10 Ballet Books