Books About [REDACTED] That Everyone Can Enjoy
No, seriously. YWR #148
I’ll tell you, but you have to promise to at least consider reading the rest of this newsletter. Deal?
…
okay ready?
…
Fine. BALLET. This week’s topic is books about BALLET that everyone can enjoy. Go ahead, freak out now.
I had to redact the title, because let’s be honest, is there a subject line that would have had less engagement? Other than perhaps the increasingly unhinged (but important!) fundraising email subject lines sent by your favorite political party?
I’ve been threatening sitting on this topic for a while now because it’s so niche. Because yes, I know, it’s often considered both too fussy and too female, and many of you are turned off already. I KNOW. But I actually think ballet is a great foundation for both fiction and non-fiction, and here’s why.
First off, it’s art meets athletics, with all the associated themes of expression, beauty, creativity, obsession, youth, elusiveness of muse, physicality, and sacrifice. Rich, no? And then, success in ballet requires such dedication to craft, such single-minded devotion, such a specific “in-culture” from ballet school to company, that it’s a compellingly specific backdrop for any kind of storytelling - mystery, drama, romance, memoir, you name it.
Plus, it’s a weird newsletter topic and that fills me with blushing glee. (But if you really hate this topic, that’s okay - go check out Sports Books That Everyone Will Love from way back in newsletter 19!)
So without further ado, let’s have a petit allegro lightning round of ballet-related books that most everyone can enjoy even if you don’t know a Misty Copeland from an Aaron Copland. Plus a few books that admittedly really require some, ah, enthusiasm for the topic. You can trust me!
Allons-y, and merde!**
Really, Anyone Can Enjoy These Books
Astonish Me: Maggie Shipstead can write good capital N-novels, and this story of a ballet dancer who helps a Baryshnikov-type defect, and then has a “normal” life … well, it’s excellent. (Also do not miss her Great Circle - not ballet related but they can’t all be, I guess.)
They’re Going to Love You - The story of a middle-aged woman who has become estranged from her father and his partner, but who is called back home as her father is dying. Themes of dance and art provide the backdrop but it’s really more about grief, and identity, and family stories. Lovely.
The Turnout - It’s Megan Abbott at her most deliciously stifling, creepy, and sexual. Body horror and family secrets inside a hothouse of a ballet school. If you haven’t read Megan Abbott yet, like, what are we doing here, people?
The Ballerinas - Oh, you’ve already read The Turnout but still want a thriller/mystery? I got you. Here’s a mystery about three women who met as teen students at the Paris Opera Ballet, who connect again in their thirties. Intertwined stories of female friendship, competition, marriage, age and art come to an unsettling head. It’s good!
Okay, These Require Slightly More Ballet Tolerance But They’re Still Good So Don’t Say No Just Yet!
Bunheads - a YA/New Adult option written by a former New York City Ballet dancer, about a New York City Ballet dancer struggling to figure out how much she wants to give to dance. Fun and very behind-the-scenes-y.
The Cranes Dance - why yes! this IS another entry by Meg Howrey! You’re welcome! This one is set in a ballet company, about a woman working to keep her place in a competitive industry while also grappling with her sister’s demons. Funny, dry, dark, smart. I loved it.
Dances - 22-year-old Cece becomes the first Black principal of the New York City Ballet, but despite the celebrity and accomplishment, she still feels like an outsider. This fictionalized version of Misty Copeland’s career explores some interesting themes of family, of power, of stepping into your freedom. I thought it was good and a nice change from admittedly very white ballet stories.
Raising the Barre - I’ve talked about this before but it bears resurfacing. This non-fiction/memoir follows a midlife writer who tries to fulfill her childhood dream of dancing in the Nutcracker. Yes, it’s a lot of ballet but it’s also a well-researched, well-written reflection on aging, resilience, risk, and refusing to settle. Also funny!
Ballet Shoes - this is a children’s book written in 1937, but for those of you with kids, it’s a good one. Three orphan sisters become the ward of their distant uncle and try to survive through show business.
Only If You Really, Really Like Ballet
Don’t Think, Dear - Although this book was quite celebrated, I thought this memoir by a former elite ballet student was okay. The issues she raises of what ballet requires of young women, and what damage is done in the pursuit of their art, are interesting if pretty uniformly negative.
Being a Ballerina - I preferred this memoir by a dancer you’ve never heard of. Instead of following an expected chronology, this was a series of essays, reveries, and moments, both good and bad, in the life of a professional dancer. Really thoughtful and extremely evocative.
Where Snowflakes Dance and Swear - this 912 page book chronicles a year at the Pacific Northwest Ballet, as written by a sportswriter. It has to be the most comprehensive, detailed account of a ballet company ever written. It’s like he simply wrote down literally every conversation without any analysis whatsoever. It’s honestly terrible. I read it twice.
No, I Haven’t Read Jennifer Homans, Why Am I Such a Dilettante?
They’re just so exhausting exhaustive.
Have I missed any ballet books? Because I think I’ve proved in excruciating detail that I. Will. Read. A. Ballet. Book. Lemme know. Or, you know, tell me how much this week’s topic was not for you!
Reverence, AKA Final Moments
All links go to Bookshop.org, supporting indie bookstores since some year I can’t be bothered to look up. If you buy through there I get like a half-cent! Or you can be like me and get your books at the library.
If this week’s topic was not for you, though I can’t even imagine how that could be, check out the archive for something more to your liking. Very little ballet in the past 148 weeks!
**I understand that dancers say “merde” to each other before they go onstage since, obviously, “break a leg” would be ominous. In my college theater group, we all used to have a shot of Jack Daniels and say, “let’s hope this doesn’t suck” before the show. So, kind of the same thing.