Shining Willow Nominee

Sadie The Ballerina

By Joan Stuchner, Illustrated by Bruno St-Aubin.

North Winds Press, 2006.
ISBN 9780439961097

Currently2.92264150943/5 Stars
1
2
3
4
5

Rated by: 530 users

Click on the stars above to rate this book

Add a Comment

Sadie wants to be a famous ballerina. She knows that she has talent and if she keeps practicing, she will be perfect. She tries to convince her mother that she should take ballet lessons but her mom just says, "we'll see" which are Sadie's least favourite words. When her family gets tickets to see a ballet at the theatre, Sadie is delighted. Her parents are shocked when during the ballet, Sadie leaves her seat and goes on stage. She runs toward the Sugar Plum Fairy who although surprised, lifts Sadie up and tosses her to the Nutcracker. Sadie waves her arms, points her toes, and tilts her head. The Nutcracker hands Sadie to the harpist, he hands her to the first violinist, then to the conductor and finally back to her parents. When Sadie asks again if she can take lessons, her wish is granted on recommendation of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

About the Author

Joan Stuchner is from Vancouver, BC

Joan Betty Stuchner was born in Leeds, England. When she was a little girl, Joan took dance lessons at a ballet school. At home she used to dance in every room and in the garden. When she wasn't dancing, she was creating characters and making up stories.

She moved to Canada when she was 18 and grew up to be a writer - telling stories instead of dancing them. She loves ballet as much as she loves books and still dresses up as a ballerina from time to time. Joan Betty Stuchner's other books include Shira's Hanukkah Gift (Scholastic, 1998) and A Peanut Butter Waltz (Annick Press). Some of her poems and stories, have been published in both Ladybug and Spider magazines and she has acted in community theatre and as a storyteller on TV's Tell A Tale Town.

She has a B.A. in English Literature and a teaching diploma. Currently, Joan Betty Stuchner teaches at Temple Sholom Religious School and is a library assistant at UBC.

About the Illustrator

Bruno St-Aubin is from Montreal, QC

After a Graphics course followed at Ahuntsic College, Bruno St-Aubin continued his studies in the field of illustration at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco. Within a year, he won an Arts grant and was invited to contribute to the editorial page of Metamorphosis magazine. Returning to Canada, he published his first children's story for Les Éditions du Raton Laveur. Curious by nature, he decided to take a look at film animation and followed a course at Concordia University in Montreal. This resulted in him winning the Bellevue Pathé Prize, awarded for the excellence of his work. From that time on, all his talent was concentrated on the youth market. He pursued his graphic career, acted as an artistic director and created illustrations for a number of different book series.

Bruno St-Aubin lives in Montreal and works on his art from his home studio. His favourite activities include soccer, cross country skiing, cycling, jogging and playing hockey.

He has illustrated over sixty children's novels, including the Fred series for La Courte Échelle and a number of children's books, mainly in Le Raton Laveur collection. He has also written and illustrated Papa est un dinosaure, Drôle de cauchemar, Papa est un castor bricoleur and Papa est un extraterrestre for Dominique et Compagnie in the À pas de Loup series. Many of these publications have been translated to English. His illustrations have also appeared in a number of Canadian and American youth magazines.

Book Reviews

CM Magazine

Suggested Activities

Discuss what students want to be when they grow up. Invite a variety of people into the class to speak about their jobs.
Have a concert in the class. Discuss etiquette and proper behavior.
Discuss what skills are important for various jobs.

The 2007 Willow Awards