All of Noel Streitfeild's books were high points of my childhood reading. So much of children's fiction is namby pamby, but these books show that children can work, train, aspire, and learn.

This was a really good and fun read. I admit that it took 3 whole months to read this and maybe it's because I haven't been really committed in reading it and I only read it when I'm bored or when I feel like it.

I really loved the writing style, I felt really attached to the characters especially Sorrel. This is such a fun children book and I would definitely read this to my future child, maybe.

There's something about Noel Streatfeild's books that I find lovely and addictive. I'm planning to move on to other books for awhile, and I'm actually pretty sad about it. I feel like I should find these books stressful -- this one took place during WWII, and, like most of the others, involves children being worried about money. But I just love the world and the characters and the way Streatfeild pulls me in. I'm looking forward to reading more of her books soon.

I caught the theatre bug early on so this one was a particular favorite of mine. Theatre Shoes includes characters from Ballet Shoes. I always like it when I recognize people from other novels, i feel so important, as though I know someone famous and now have bragging rights.

a little slow moving but a cute story

I loved these books and now my kids love the books.
I just wish my library had them all, because even for used books my book-budget is tiny.

This is an old favourite from my childhood. I loved all the Noel Streatfeild books.

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This captivating companion to Ballet Shoes tells the story of 3 orphans who become students at a famous theatre school

After their father disappeared in the war, Sorrell, Holly, and Mark Forbes were sent to live with their grandfather. When he dies, the three orphans are on the move again—this time to London, where their maternal grandmother is a well-known actress.

The city is a strange, bustling place that frightens young Holly, but the siblings’ new home at 14 Ponsonby Square has a garden that instantly enchants them. Their grandmother enrols them at the Children’s Academy of Dancing and Stage Training, where they’ll carry on the tradition of their famous theatre family, which includes cousins they never knew they had. Stuck-up Miranda thinks she can act better than Sorrel; homesick Mark discovers he can sing; and Holly is a natural dancer.

Will Sorrel, Holly, and Mark live up to their family legacy?

When their father is lost at sea, Sorrel, Mark, and Holly are forced to move to London to live with their previously unknown actress grandmother. She's determined to have them follow in the family's theatrical footsteps--no matter how much they protest! Do they have the talent to perform on the stage? Will they be able to adjust to this glamorous but difficult family?

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This really should be called a sequel to Ballet Shoes, because I don't think the novel is really strong enough to stand on its own. Sorrel and Holly just aren't as complex, multidimensional, and perfectly imperfect as the three Fossil sisters, and whiny Mark is just a dead bore, casting off his talent because he wants to be in the Navy and thinks theater is for girls. Oddly enough, the little bits of Petrovna we see from Ballet Shoes make me wonder about her sexuality--she sends Mark a screwdriver as a gift in one of her letters!

But there are just too many characters--why name two secondary characters Miriam and Miranda, for heaven's sake--and I found the book pretty predictable and lackluster, except for the scenes depicting Shakespeare, where the presence of older actors and some real sense of the British theater's backstage life made things more interesting.

It's a good book, and I think I would have liked it more as a kid, but not a must-read classic.

Three orphans, Sorrel, Mark, and Holly, go to live with their grandmother, a famous actress. She enrolls them in a performing arts academy, which they are unsure about. But as they go on, they each develop their own talents - Sorrel for acting, Mark for singing, and Holly for dancing. The three girls from Ballet Shoes have a peripheral appearance, giving scholarships so the children can continue their education. Another delightful 'Shoe' book.

Lovely book about 3 children in WWII who have to move to live with their actress grandmother when their father is missing in action and their family circumstances changed. The 3 different characters show different talents and personalities as they begin studying dance and drama, nicely linked to the book Ballet Shoes by reference to the scholarships bequeathed by Pauline, Posy and Petrova who write letters to Sorrel, Mark and Holly. Sweet book.

Better than Dancing Shoes, not quite as good as Ballet Shoes.