Bunheads

Bunheads by Sophie Flack
Published October 10, 2011

About the Book:

As a dancer with the ultra-prestigious Manhattan Ballet Company, nineteen-year-old Hannah Ward juggles intense rehearsals, dazzling performances and complicated backstage relationships. Up until now, Hannah has happily devoted her entire life to ballet.

But when she meets a handsome musician named Jacob, Hannah's universe begins to change, and she must decide if she wants to compete against the other "bunheads" in the company for a star soloist spot or strike out on her own in the real world. Does she dare give up the gilded confines of the ballet for the freedoms of everyday life?

My Thoughts:

Cute book, but it has little substance to it.  The book is heavy on ballet jargon, which means little to me, but I don't think that took too much away from the book.  I got where I just skimmed over terminology I didn't know and the story was still easy to follow.  It just didn't have much depth to it (the book itself) nor did the characters.  All were pretty one-dimensional and the book was pretty predictable.  The book does give a great glimpse into the life of a professional bunhead, but it fails to give much of a connection to the characters in the book.  They just weren't all that well developed and seemed to fit stereotypes rather than being complex, interesting people.  Despite all of that, it is a cute book.  It's a quick and easy read, and it was interesting reading about a world I know little about.  It does real more like a middle grade book than YA, though.