Bunheads by Sophie Flack

I started the novel, Bunheads by Sophie Flack this weekend and the very first page had me intrigued.  The narration is done by a girl who does ballet, but hates the term "ballerina." This book is something I can relate to already through the very first sentence because, as a dancer, I also hate the stereotype given as perfect and pink.  As Hannah Ward, the main character, describes the life behind the scenes of ballet, I find it even more beautiful than the description of on-stage.  Beat up dance wear is what describes dancers who are dancing for themselves, and for strength rather than for the pleasures of an audience.

The first page is ended with a quote from one of Hannah's ballet teachers and it says, "Throw yourself into your dancing now, because the lifespan of a dancer can be as short as a fruit fly's." This can either be taken to the literal level of the fact that a dancing career lasts only as log as your prime, and can end extremely quickly as you lose your young-tallent, but I prefer looking at this quote in the less literal way.

To me this quote is showing that every class, every show, every second that we are dancing should be lived as your last, because each and every movement of your dancing should tall a story in itself, and show the inner beauty of the person delivering each movement.  Dance is an art, and can tell you more about a person than words, so each dance should be a person, and not a stereotype.  I'm excited to see where Bunheads goes, and how the author will portray this 19 year old ballet dancer's life.