A Dance Like Starlight: One Ballerina's Dream

Gr 1–4—An African American girl from Harlem dreams of becoming a prima ballerina in this beautifully written narrative, which is also a tribute to Janet Collins, who, in 1951, was the "first colored prima ballerina" to perform at the Metropolitan Opera. While her mother cleans and sews costumes for the ballet school, the child grows up amid the fittings and rehearsals. One day she performs "…an entire dance in the wings, from beginning to final bow" well enough to impress the Ballet Master himself. He invites her to join the daily lessons despite the fact that she will be unable to perform onstage with his white pupils. When her hardworking Mama sees that Collins will be at the Met, she buys two tickets, "…even though it'll cost her half/of what she's put back for a new sewing machine." The aspiring dancer is entranced with the performance: "It's like Miss Collins is dancing for me/only for me/showing me who I can be." An author's note points out that Collins appeared at the Met four years before Marian Anderson's debut. Though the narrator is imagined, the inspirational message is real. Cooper's art incorporates his signature subtractive process and mixed media in tones of brown and pink to achieve illustrations as beautiful and transporting as the text. Pair this title with Pam Muñoz Ryan and Brian Selznick's When Marian Sang (Scholastic, 2002), and use this poetic offering for units on black history or women's history.—Barbara Auerbach, New York City Public Schools