Brilliant Aunt Maude visits seasides the world over and has become quite the pebble collector. Pebbles of all shapes, sizes and colours and even one that looks like Elvis Presley if you squint a bit.
Her favourite pebbles however, are Marigold, Mabel and Morris. One by one, and by strange and unusual ways, each child arrives at the stage door of Brilliant Aunt Maude's theatre in the heart of London, home to an extraordinary cast of performers. There's Dante the miraculous magician, Petunia the storyteller, and seventy-year-old contortionists - the Fortune Sisters! But ticket sales are dwindling and the curtains might have to close - for the final time.
One day as the Pebbles are exploring the many nooks and crannies of the theatre, they stumble upon something they were never meant to find...something that just might save the theatre after all...
INTO THE SPOTLIGHT by Carrie Hope Fletcher
Published: Sep 2020
Genre: Middle Grade Fiction
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
As someone who grew up loving and relating to the story of Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield, this book ticked all the right boxes for me!
Inspired by the original story and the characters of the Fossil sisters, Into the Spotlight was very much in keeping with the theatrical, inspirational and aspirational themes of the original book.
"We all wanted to play the best and biggest part we could, so you were taught to see everyone around you as competition. As you get older you realise there's just no room for such pettiness. You either get the part or you don't. Life moves on either way."
Marigold, Mabel and Morris Pebble are family by chance, all of them orphaned and rescued by their Brilliant Aunt Maude, also known as BAM. Sounding familiar yet? But this is more than just a modernised retelling as I had first anticipated. When Marigold finds a secret book written by the Fossil sisters - Pauline, Petrova and Posy - behind a broken bit of wall in the a theatre dressing room, the Pebble children become fascinated with what became of the Fossil sisters. Did they fulfil their vow? Did they managed to get their names in the history books, or not?
This was a story within a story and a brilliant continuation to Ballet Shoes if anyone is so inclined to live a little longer in their story. I would also argue that you don't need to know the original story in order to enjoy this book, though by the end of it, I'm sure you're going to be curious.
Carrie Hope Fletcher as a performer herself, has captured the magical world of the theatre most perfectly through the sparkling eyes of a child. I loved that one of children in this retelling was a boy and an aspiring ballerina - by all means let's normalise boys being dancers for the next generation, as girls still vastly outnumber boys in the industry especially at a young age. The writing and the storytelling was fun and articulate, though not too challenging for kids to read themselves.
This was a brilliant middle grade fiction, and one I'll certainly be recommending to adults and children alike.
Happy reading,
Zuzu 🖊
Find me across social media @zuzuspages for more bookish content - links below!
I love it when there's a continuation to something that you've loved, and I loved Ballet Shoes, so will look forward to reading this. Thank you 💋x
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! I love that too, but I also like it when you find a prequel to a story you love. Both are an added dimension
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