PICTURE BOOKS
Brett, Jan

Jan Brett's The Nutcracker

(2) K-3 Brett (whose many other Christmas titles include The Twelve Days of Christmas; Home for Christmas, rev. 11/11; and The Animals' Santa, rev. 11/14) pulls out all the stops for this lush and faithful retelling of ­Hoffmann's tale and Tchaikovsky's ­ballet, guiding readers through the story with clear visual references to the latter's music and the dances. Detailed watercolors on double-page spreads carry the plot, while narrative-filled borders show pertinent musical instruments and scraps of the score. Brett sets the story in a Russia filled with snowy exteriors and sumptuous scenes of the ballet's ­Christmas party, the dramatic ­vanquishing of the Mouse King, and the rest of Marie's magical adventures with the Nutcracker-turned-real-boy.

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