Lately I’ve read quite a few of books by Noel Streatfeild and found that I enjoy them very much. The last one, I’ve read was probably her most famous one, called “Ballet Shoes”.
I won’t bother to write a summary, since Wikipedia already provides one. (No worries about spoilers, I’ve modified it a little):
Ballet Shoes
The narrative concern three adopted sisters, Pauline, Petrova and Posy Fossil. Each of the girls is discovered as a baby by Matthew Brown (Great-Uncle-Matthew, or Gum), an elderly, absent-minded geologist and professor, during his world travels, and sent home to his great-niece, Sylvia, and her childhood nanny.
Gum (Great-Uncle-Matthew)embarks upon an expedition of many years, and arranges for money for the family for five years. He does not return when he planned, and despite scrimping, the money is used up. Sylvia and Nana must take in boarders to help make ends meet, which introduces a variety of people who become important to the children: Mr. Simpson, who runs an auto repair garage; Drs. Jakes and Smith, a pair of professors who take over the children’s schooling after Sylvia can no longer afford their school fees, and Miss Theo Dane, a dance teacher, who arranges for the children to begin dance and stage training.
As the children mature, they begin to develop their own talents, and take on some of the responsibility of supporting the household… (Summary by Wikipedia)
It’s a sweet story, with charming characters and enough twists and turns to keep you interested. Also it’s beautifully written. I had a lot of fun reading it, even though it’s a “children’s book”. Still of all books I’ve read by Noel Streatfeild I liked “Thursday’s Child” best. (See earlier blog post)
I won’t post a summary here, though I guess I must mention that the book is an autobiography, in which the author tells about her childhood as an unwanted Chinese daughter. (If you’d like to read a proper summary, just click the book title right at the beginning… I linked it directly to Adeline Yen Mah’s homepage).
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