To Dance: a Memoir
By Siena Siegel
Antheneum Books for Young Readers, 2006, unpag. graphic novel
One of this year's Siebert Honor books is"To Dance: memoir" by Siena Siegel, being the first graphic novel to win this award. Some people think that graphic novel is just a fancy name for comic book, and on the most basic level it is, in the same way that a billboard is a work of art. However, a graphic novel is much more than just a comic book. It is a new literary form. In a graphic novel, the role of pictures and words are reversed. In a regular novel, the text is illustrated by a few well chosen pictures. In a graphic novel the pictures bear the burden of story telling and are illustrated by a few well chosen words. The graphic novel format is a good choice for the topic of this book, which is, of course, dancing. This is a story of the author's journey from her first ballet class at age 6, to dancing with Baryshnikov at the New York State Theater. The pictures show her first classes, passion for dance, hard work and rewards. The story is told with sparce, straight forward narrative that sounds like a young girl's voice. The pictures, done by the author's husband, are simple line drawings, filled in with mostly pastel watercolor washes. Even though they are simple they are very expressive and take full advantage of the visual language that has become a part of the graphic novel vocabulary. The book is ideal for young girls who are just starting dance class or for anyone who has ever been enchanted by a ballet performance.
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