School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Desiree is a driven and talented aspiring dancer in Paris. She only has one problem-bunnies are not allowed in the ballet. So what is a cottontail to do? Armed with a pink tutu, she braves multiple obstacles before finding her way into the spotlight. Although disguised as a book about perseverance and discrimination, this book is a sugary confection that pays tribute to the ballet and Paris. The character development is slight, and the bunny triumphs too quickly to make the conflicts feel serious. The book is written in a glib, effervescent tone: "They put false eyelashes on me, which felt very glamorous, and powder on my face, which felt very tickly." The illustrations are a perfect stylistic match to the text, with bubbly, swaying line drawings filled in with watercolor. Francophiles will appreciate the Eiffel Tower and interior design details, including pink telephones. The rabbit and human characters are drawn in a minimalistic, sketchy style without any facial details other than dashes for eyes. The quick lines capture dance movement eloquently, demonstrating the expertise of the author/illustrator, a ballet dancer himself. Children may appreciate the naive nature of the illustrations, since they resemble a child's artwork. Relevant vocabulary, such as "tendu devant," "passe," and "grand jete," are illustrated and demonstrated for those who are new to the art. Ballet-loving children and the Francophile adults who read to them may gravitate toward this title, but its story line and character development aren't particularly memorable.-Jess deCourcy Hinds, Bard High School Early College, Queens, NY (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Desiree Rabbit lives in Paris and believes she was born to dance: "And though I had never heard of a bunny in the ballet, I wasn't going to let a little thing like that stop me." Like any good backstage story, the road is not easy: in ballet school Desiree is hazed by the imperious Madame Molotov and lands "in a tangled heap" when she attempts her first jump. But her determination and talent win over the human dancers, and when her big break comes during a performance of The Nutcracker, she delivers with elan. Debut author Beck's lightly arch voice, fluid ink lines, and deft washes of color give the pages a breezy stylishness. But while Desiree starts out as recognizably rabbitlike, imaginatively rendered with just a few appropriately balletic, curvi-linear lines, Beck decides she needs a more human body to carry off the tendu devant and grand jete, and she sprouts the long limbs and nipped-in torso of a classic ballerina. Readers are left with a character who resembles a tiny person wearing a bunny head. Ages 4-8. Agent: David Kuhn, Kuhn Projects. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.