The Nutcracker. Jan Brett. 2021. [November] 32 pages. [Source: Library]
First sentence: "Sounds like Christmas, smells like Christmas, it is Christmas!" Marie laughed. "Thumps and bumps and jingling bells--I'm ready!" whooped her brother, Fritz.
Premise/plot: Jan Brett has adapted the Nutcracker and illustrated it as only she can. For fans of Jan Brett, this one would be a wonderful addition to a large collection of books--many with a wintry feel.
Jan Brett has set her Nutcracker story in Russia. Marie does go on a magical adventure of sorts--a dream, perhaps?! She enters through a cabinet and finds a wonderful, marvelous world full of animals--mainly if not exclusively.
My thoughts: Jan Brett's The Nutcracker is neither the original-original Nutcracker story (that many fans of the ballet may be more unfamiliar with) nor the traditional story of the ballet. Don't expect ANY dances, performances, and the like. It has been a few days since I read the book. I do remember animals playing musical instruments. I don't recall if there were any dancing animals. But definitely no ballet-dancing animals. Nor human ballet dancers. This picture book is as far removed as possible from the world of ballet dancing.
It is very wintry. And it has its own look and feel to it--it is all very Jan Brett-ish.
© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers
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