From April 26- May 5, we celebrate National Dance Week, a time to reflect on the benefits and beauty of dance and its ability “to enrich our lives, our bodies, our spirits and our culture.” Dance, dancers, and ballet have always proved fertile ground for children’s book creators. Angelina Ballerina and Ballet of the Elephants have already been reviewed for the Almanac. The best book on dance that I have seen in years, Ballet for Martha by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan, will be reviewed on May 11, Martha Graham’s birthday.
And today I present a fabulous picture book that makes me laugh every time I read it. In more than eighty books, including those about the famous vampire bunny Bunnicula, author James Howe has proved himself a comic master. He knows how to tell a very funny story that also motivates readers to keep turning the pages. His books often win awards selected by children. His text for Brontorina, which appeared in 2010, stands with the best of his work. Not only has he found a funny premise for a book, he has delivered it on point.
Brontorina Apatosaurus has a dream—a dream shared by many youngsters. She wants to dance, and so she appears, somewhat timidly, at Madame Lucille’s Dance Academy for Girls and Boys. Madame Lucille quickly spots a problem—Brontorina is a dinosaur, a large dinosaur. “But in my heart,” our heroine says, “I am a ballerina.” So with a command, “Please try not to squash the other dancers,” Madame Lucille begins her training—plie, releve, arabesque, and jete. The students become enamored of Brontorina. One of the other dancer’s mothers fashions special shoes for her. And Madame Lucille decides to find larger space, so her star pupil can dance. When they go outdoors, to perform en plein air, other dinosaurs, cows, and hippos join the ranks. The final page, which shows Brontorina being held overhead in a ballet pose, ends with the words, And it all began with a dream.
Like the best picture book text, Brontorina provides ample opportunity for an illustrator to add magic. Randy Cecil plays that humor to full advantage, as he shows the dinosaur in all the poses. On each page he uses Brontorina’s circular shape to balance his composition. In this book both the author and illustrator have executed some flawless dance steps themselves, moving in perfect unison.
The entire performance makes readers want to reread the book and/or head to the next ballet in town. If you do, this book provides a perfect fantasy line—“Do you think Brontorina will perform today?”
Here’s a page from Brontorina:
