Ballet Besties Series

When Dante’s soccer teammates start picking on him for taking ballet, his confidence tanks—until he asks a popular hip-hop artist to help give his class an edge at winning an upcoming competition.

Like everyone in his family, Dante has always been a dancer—all kinds of dancing. This term he’s taking ballet at Shimmer and Shine, and he loves playing soccer, too. He sees them as two sides of the same coin, both involving intricate moves. But lately, his teammates have been teasing him about ballet and even refusing to pass him the ball during practice. What will get them to let up? Can Dante show them that dance is nothing to scoff at? When Dante sees a notice about an upcoming competition that might give him a chance, he asks his ballet instructor if the class can enter. And as he watches a video of his favorite hip-hop artist, Nitty Smitty, who hails from the same neighborhood, Dante gets an idea. What if Nitty Smitty would agree to help them blend chaînés with moonwalks for an original hiplet (“hip-lay”) adaptation of Beauty and the Beast? Part of a series of joyful and inclusive chapter books about friendship, teamwork, and ballet, Dante’s story, touching on themes of bullying and resilience, creativity and self-confidence, will appeal to aspiring ballet and hip-hop dancers alike and features an extensive glossary of ballet and hip-hop dance terms at the end.

Pirouette your way to the Shimmer and Shine dance studio! This first offering in a fun, inclusive, and accessible early chapter-book series brings the joy of dance to young readers.

When Yara joins a community dance school, she meets lots of other children her age who are there to start their training or just for the fun of it. Soon she has a group of ballet besties she loves to dance with—until their grumpy landlady, Dame Clougston-Willmott, threatens to close the studio. Suddenly it’s up to Yara and her new friends to keep Shimmer and Shine open! Will putting on a performance of The Sleeping Beauty reawaken the Dame’s love for dance? Could Yara have a chance to dance her dream role of Aurora? And most important of all, can the ballet besties save their studio? From a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet and an award-winning children’s author comes an engaging story of friendship, responsibility, and teamwork, with back matter explaining the various dance techniques and more. Black-and-white illustrations bring a diverse group of characters to life.

Whether they’re devoted dancers or in it just for fun, kids of all kinds are invited to the Shimmer and Shine studio! In this second book in a series, Indu overcomes some stage fright with the help of her ballet besties.

Indu loves learning ballet at her local community dance school, but unlike her friends, she doesn’t want to be a principal dancer when she grows up. While she’s a bit afraid of being on stage, dancing is still one of her favorite hobbies. When the class has the chance to see the ballet Cinderella put on professionally, Indu realizes the other way she’s different—her mom can’t afford the ticket. Indu figures out a way to go, but it makes her think: Aren’t there other kids out there who want to learn ballet and can’t? Shouldn’t ballet be for everyone? From a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet and an award-winning children’s author comes an engaging story of friendship, responsibility, and teamwork, with back matter explaining the various dance techniques and more. Black-and-white illustrations bring a diverse group of characters to life.