A Dance Like Starlight: One Ballerina's Dream

Last updated Friday, February 21, 2025

Author: Kristy Dempsey
Illustrator: Floyd Cooper
Date of Publication: 2014
ISBN: 0399252843
Grade Level: 2nd    (GLCs: Click here for grade level guidelines.)
Date(s) Used: Mar. 2025

Synopsis: Little ballerinas have big dreams. Dreams of pirouettes and grande jetes, dreams of attending the best ballet schools and of dancing starring roles on stage. But in Harlem in the 1950s, dreams don't always come true - they take a lot of work and a lot of hope. And sometimes hope is hard to come by.

But the first African-American prima ballerina, Janet Collins, did make her dreams come true. And those dreams inspired ballerinas everywhere, showing them that the color of their skin couldn't stop them from becoming a star.

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