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Recently, I was given a free copy of Princess Ruby’s Ballet Class by Deborah Bradley to read and review with my daughter Emalee.
Emalee is a major girly girl and absolutely ADORES anything to do with princesses or dancing…THIS BOOK HAS BOTH!!
When I received this book, Emalee wasn’t exactly feeling well so I thought I would wait to read it. However, after a few days passed and she still wasn’t feeling great, I figured what better to cheer her up than a good book?
You may be asking, “So what is Princess Ruby’s Ballet Class about?”
Well, that is an easy one!
Princess Ruby misses her normal ballet class and gets invited to participate in a different class. Of course this is a little scary what with a new teacher and new kids to dance with! This story follows as Princess Ruby works through her fears and figures out that it’s okay to be afraid and try new things.
Here is how Amazon describes Princess Ruby’s Ballet Class:
“In Princess Ruby’s Make-Up Ballet Class, Princess Ruby tackles a new and seemingly scary situation and learns what it really means to be brave in everyday life.
– A great way to help children gain a healthy perspective on things that are new and uncomfortable.
– Newly added Glossary Of Dance Terms used by this princess ballerina.
– Inspired and happy ending that leaves your little princess (or prince) in a great place for sleep!”
When I first opened Princess Ruby’s Ballet Class on my computer I was a little concerned because of the Queen’s name. It’s a bit of a mouth full and I wasn’t sure how Emalee would relate to it. However, as soon as the FREE audio book that comes with it started playing Emalee was hooked!
I will say that I wish the pictures and the audio book could connect in some way so that the pages turned with the voice. Or maybe it could do like a lot of other kids books and make a ding or some distinct sound when it is time to turn the page. The way that it is now, Emalee would not be able to read/listen to this book on her own.
I thought it was super sweet that Emalee really got into the book. She was concerned for Princess Ruby and got upset when she did. It was awesome to see her really get into the book and connect with the characters. Even sick, she was totally into it!
I think that Emalee’s favorite part of the book was the ending. She was excited to get up and try out the dance moves described in the glossary!
As a mom of a child that takes dance, I recognized most of these moves and was able to help Emalee when she wasn’t sure. Luckily, she has been taking ballet for 2 years and knew most of the moves. However, I feel like the glossary would be more kid (and non-dance mom) friendly if there were small pictures attached showing the child how to perform each move. Just a thought.
I have to say that this is a book I would recommend. I loved the message/moral within it. I was very happy with the fact that it didn’t just blatantly say “you shouldn’t be afraid of new situations” it showed it in a way that almost any little girl can relate to.
For example, a week or so after we first read this book (we have read it a few times now) Emalee had to go and get one of her ears re-pierced.
Sadly, one of her ears kept getting infected so we had to take it out and let it grow up…this meant getting her ear RE-PIERCED!! Part of why kids don’t freak out the first time is because they have no idea what to expect…Emalee knew what to expect and was terrified. I offered to just take the other one out and not have her ears pierced…but she was determined!
While sitting in the jewelry shop with a crying/screaming Emalee I might add she takes a deep breath and says, “I need to be like Princess Ruby…be brave Ema, be brave Ema.” It was super sweet! She was giving herself a little pep talk and used the book and it’s characters to do it!! How cool is that??
We did walk out with a beautifully pierced ear and a calm child…she even wrote them a thank you note and picture to take back. She said that she felt bad for reacting so badly.
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.