(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Salena Barnes. "Passing down history and knowledge from one generation to the next is a tradition deeply rooted in both the Black experience and ballet." Copeland shines a spotlight on twenty-seven Black ballerinas who have inspired her, mentored her, and paved the way for her professional ballet career. Accompanied by a full-page portrait of the dancer in motion (rendered in what looks like ink and watercolor), each one-page essay focuses on the realities of being Black in a "very white ballet world" while discussing the subject's career highlights, struggles, and legacy. Copeland's personal reflections give the collection an intimate perspective.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) 4-6 With Brandy Colbert. In this adaptation of her adult autobiography, Copeland chronicles her path to becoming a principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre--the first-ever African American ballerina to achieve that distinction. Engaging prose frankly details obstacles to her hard-won success: poverty, family strife, body shame, injury, and, most significantly, racism. An inspiring, approachable memoir of an extraordinary dancer committed to making ballet accessible to all.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Christopher Myers. In an imagined dialogue, American Ballet Theatre soloist Copeland reassures a disheartened African American ballet student that she also had self-doubts: "darling child, don't you know / you're just where I started." Richly hued collages make the dancers on stage seem to fly. An author's note says that Copeland never saw herself in ballet books; this book encourages aspiring dancers of all colors.

Reviewer: Kathleen T. Horning | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2014