Underwater Elegance & Delight

The Crab Ballet written by Renée LaTulippe and illustrated by Cécile Metzger, published by Cameron Kids.

Whether you have a budding ballerina, a child who loves rhyme and rhythm, a marine biologist in the making, or not, The Crab Ballet will surely please readers and listeners alike.

This beautiful book captivates its audience from cover to end papers and in every image in between. Cécile Metzger's enchanting watercolor art carries readers throughout the text in waves of color and emotion.

Known for her expertise in rhyme, Renée LaTulippe has created the most magical and musical world undersea where:

"turtles spiral in between

A seahorse pair glides on the scene"

"claws aloft in fifth position,

side chassée in repetition"

and

"Bows draw notes from violins,

as arm to arm ten starfish spin."

From Act 1 to intermission to the final bows, The Crab Ballet will delight its audience and encourage calls of "Encore!"

Ballet terms are also sprinkled seamlessly throughout the narrative. Back matter includes definitions and pronunciations.

Imagine It!

Imagine your own ballet!

Take a piece of paper and fold it in half width-wise and then length-wise.

Pick four ballet terms from the back of the book and one of your favorite characters, from The Crab Ballet or from your own imagination.

In each box of your paper, draw your character doing one of the the four ballet positions you chose. Write the ballet term that corresponds to it.

Decorate each box as if a scene from a ballet performance and/or write a short story or poem to describe the show.

Imagine how lovely it would be!