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Ballerina

A Novel

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Ballerina

By: Edward Stewart
Narrated by: Angela Goethals
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About this listen

Before Black Swan, there was Ballerina: Edward Stewart’s acclaimed novel that follows two young women into the cutthroat world of professional dance.

Stephanie Lang and Christine Avery meet in ballet school. Although they share the same dream - to become great dancers - they could not be more different. Ballet is in Stephanie’s blood; her mother, Anna, is a former dancer who lives to see her daughter achieve the fame she herself never attained. Christine has lived a sheltered life, secure in the love of her family. But her privileged upbringing conceals a devastating secret.

Two teenage dancers, one chance to make it. From the thrill and terror of auditions through years of meticulous training to landing a coveted spot in a professional company, Stephanie and Christine relentlessly pursue their ambitions. As they give their all to dance, they become inseparable - until they are torn apart by their passion for the same man, a brilliant Russian dancer whose seductive, mercurial temperament will have unforeseen consequences for them all.

©1978, 1979 Edward Stewart (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Coming of Age Genre Fiction Psychological Fiction
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A highly predictable tale of two friends, each with monster mother. Undeveloped characters in unrealistic situations. An undemanding beach read.

Ideal for ballet mad teenagers…

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I didn’t think I would get through this to the end. It was slow and ponderous. Redeemed only by the last chapters. Was I glad to have listened to it? No. Can’t recommend.

Tedious beginning and middle.

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I’m crying finishing it, what a fantastic book, I have no clue about ballet and absolutely loved it. I loved how we found out the story of many of the characters.

Amazing book

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Very engaging. Found the descriptions of the ballet performances amazing. Such detail and the descriptions really brought it all to life. Very good at character development. However I found the personalities or lack thereof of Stephanie and Christine a bit hard to take. so passive and driving minuted in their relationships with men. I felt the story went on a bit long and the end was a bit hard to believe. Overall an enjoyable experience, though!

Superb

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Wonderfully drama packed. Besides the attempt at danish accents, the narrator conveyed the story beautifully

Reads like a drama series on telly

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