Juvenile Classic: Ballet Shoes, Noel Streatfeild and Diane Goode

Ballet Shoes
Noel Streatfeild, illustrated by Diane Goode
ISBN: 0679901051 (library binding)
Re-read while off at a conference.

I don't remember the first time I read this book, but I know it wasn't during childhood.  Which is a crying shame, because I would have loved this sweet little classic domestic about three adopted siblings finding their passions and their purpose in the worlds of dance and performance and machinery.

The plot is simple: an old man is an inveterate traveler and fossil hunter, and he picks up three "fossils" along the way that are a bit different.  They're left at his big home in the care of "nanny" and his grand-niece, and while he's away, they grow up in difficult financial circumstances, necessitating them hosting boarders and the girls performing (dance and acting) professionally to earn money as soon as possible.

It's like Alcott, but less twee, and not really any moralizing at all.

There's a movie also, with a very peculiarly aged (and blonde!) Emma Watson, which I haven't seen yet, but seems watchable in that sort of "Shirley Temple" adorable saccharine way.

Memoir: As you Wish, by Cary Elwes & Joe Layden

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride
Cary Elwes & Joe Layden
ISBN: 9781476764023
Read February 8, 2015
A specifically-limited memoir shows all the fun and hope that went into The Princess Bride.

Twu Wuv.  That is what bwings me to this book today.  Wuv, twu wuv, that followed me from childhood through the process of finding friends (generally through the rapier-sharp application of quotes to be exchanged) to adulthood.  The Princess Bride is a cultural touchstone for many people, especially of my specific generation (and now of our kids) and Elwes has done an absolutely fantastic job of remembering (and collecting others' memories) of the life and love behind the scenes of the creation of this utterly perfect and timeless film.

Learn how he bonded with Mandy Patinkin over who would be the most adept at swordfighting (oh, by the way, all that swordfighting?  Was them.  No tricks, no extras, no stunt-doubles (except for the flips) and with Andre the Giant over his prodigious drinking abilities.  Learn how he got exiled from the set because of Billy Crystal (and how Mandy sprained a rib for the same reason).  Learn how he broke an important bone, and kept on filming!

Learn about how everyone involved believed in and loved this peculiar little "unfilmable" book, and how they all worked hard to play it straight so the audience could have the fun of being part of the joke.  Learn about how Goldman was so nervous that he was praying out loud on set during filming!

Love this book.  Love the movie.  Loved learning more about it, and about the actors that I adore, and their hopes and fears and concerns about this project, and how gratified and happy they all are that so many people have understood their passion and taken this film into their hearts.

Just an all around perfect little vignette of a memoir.  Just absolutely beautiful.  

JuvFiction: A Different Twist, Elizabeth Levy

A Different Twist
Elizabeth Levy
ISBN: 0590332295
(Published originally by Apple/Scholastic in 1984, based on a teleplay by Dianne Dixon as an ABC weekend special by Scholastic Productions)

Found this via someone searching for an old book remembered from childhood.  I didn't read it myself back then, but it seems like it would have been right up my alley.

Basic bones: Christi is an aspiring actress/singer, and she's delighted when her actor crush Phil Grey comes to her hometown to direct a staging of Oliver! - until she learns that he's only casting local boys in the "urchin chorus."  She and her best friend Lizbeth hatch a plot for Christi to become Chris - which works perfectly well until Christi's scruples, as well as the more technical difficulties of playing a boy in a theatre environment (dressing rooms, close quarters) force her to reveal herself the night of the dress rehearsal.

Overall, pretty good, if really stereotypical and quickly paced.  I can tell that it was originally a tv performance, because of the very visual and action-oriented scenes that weren't really necessary - the wheelie and the constant prat-falling being the main tells.  I enjoyed the contrast in relations between Christi and Lizbeth, and between Chris and her new stage friends, and with her parents.

It even managed to not date itself horribly - there are no mentions of anything technological in any detail that would date horribly, and even the attitude towards ear-piercing is looked at as a personal view, not as a society or cultural thing.

A cute, light-hearted read.    

Storytelling Development

Way back when, in the misty years of high school mumblty-peg years ago, I worked as a volunteer for a public library summer reading program, and as part of that program, the staff encouraged the young volunteers to become involved in community cultural activities.

During those summers working with the library in my teens, I was an artists' model (that was fun, and I got a few portraits out of the experience) developed my interest in backstage theatre through a variety of productions, got hands-on with puppetry, and participated in community storytelling events.

Well, now that library school is over and done with, and I'm finally settling into the routine of my new exalted position as a librarian (with all the various hats that accompany the title) I'm feeling an urge to get back into some of those interests.  

Theatre isn't on the table right now (but might be in the future) and puppetry is a little too involved for my available storage space at home and work.

Storytelling?  I remember that I enjoyed it more than acting, and that it was less involved than puppetry (at least, comparing the way I did puppetry and the way I did storytelling).  There is an active storytelling community meeting just a few miles away from my workplace.   At least one of my co-workers in the children's department is an active storyteller with that group.

So, with a trepidatious heart, I am thinking about getting back into performing for audiences who aren't toddlers (or are distracted by their toddlers).  As part of that, I'll be researching (naturally) and looking at picture books (also obvious) to find legends and fairy tales and myths and folk tales to develop into a repertoire.

The posts for these will be noted as "Storytelling."  We'll see how it goes!