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Dancing with Degas
This imaginative board book features beautiful paintings by a renowned artist paired with playful, rhyming text. Children can enter Edgar Degas's magical world of toe shoes, tutus and elegant ballerinas. Dancing with Degas is a fun introduction to art and an imaginative adventure all rolled into one!
22 pages, Board Book
First published July 1, 2003
2 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
November 14, 2025
A wonderful book that puts the 'ballerina' paintings of Degas into a sequence that forms a simple story that children can follow. So often we are caught up in the day to day world of existence; Degas has always 'suspended' that world for me - forcing me to stop and look closely at images transcending time and place.
August 11, 2014
In my continuing battle with my mother about not having kids, she loves to buy out-of-the-ordinary children's books "just in case."
Sigh.
This one is pretty cool, though; it sticks a little rhyme-y narrative to a bunch of Degas paintings. Sure, some of the rhymes are rather forced, but the narrative pretty much makes sense and does pair really well with the paintings. Also, I like the wavy aspect of the text layout and the subtle watercolor shading behind the paintings. I bet this would be lovely if you have kids. I don't, and I still find it lovely.
But not lovely enough to have kids to read this. It can be lovely only for me.
Sigh.
This one is pretty cool, though; it sticks a little rhyme-y narrative to a bunch of Degas paintings. Sure, some of the rhymes are rather forced, but the narrative pretty much makes sense and does pair really well with the paintings. Also, I like the wavy aspect of the text layout and the subtle watercolor shading behind the paintings. I bet this would be lovely if you have kids. I don't, and I still find it lovely.
But not lovely enough to have kids to read this. It can be lovely only for me.
August 17, 2015
The children love to look at the Degas's paintings. Who says you have to be a adult to appreciate art. I find it fascinating when the children pick up this book and stare at the paintings. There are other books in this series. There all amazing. What a wonderful way to introduce children to art.
February 26, 2019
The rhymes were a bit of a stretch, but how could anyone not love the paintings?
August 7, 2022
idk why I like this one. don't @ me.
January 29, 2015
Kathleen Hoellerich
Dancing with Degas, by Julie Merberg and Suzanne Bober is a story about ballerinas getting ready for a performance from start to finish. The reader goes on a journey with the ballerinas from preparing for the show with practice, to performing the show, to finally getting to sit down and rest their feet. The story is just as strict as the life of a ballerina. The message is to teach children about the work that goes into a performance. The process of bringing the art of a ballerina, the art of Edgar Degas, and the art of a story into one children’s book is beautiful.
The peritext (on the last two pages) informs the reader that the illustrator is a French artist named Edgar Degas. His pastel paintings of ballerinas are truly elegant. Degas’s use of color is eye catching when it is time for the ballerina customs to shine. The text guides the reader to take notice of the colors in the illustration, “A fairy princess shines in green.” There is a strong point Edgar Degas makes with his paintings. The outside observer can tell the image is not a photograph but the paintings are done in such a way to make it feel like they are real life people.
The text is written poetically. The tone of the author is soft. “The teacher counts 1,2,3,4 and the dancers spin across the flour.” The reader can hear the beat of the music in parts of the text. The illustrator depicts the ballerinas as working so very hard. He shows them yawning and rubbing their tiered necks. Degas and the author tell two different stories to the reader at once. The author is telling the story through the point of view of the outside observer or audience. The illustrator is telling the story through the eyes of the hard working and exhausted ballerinas.
Dancing with Degas, by Julie Merberg and Suzanne Bober is a story about ballerinas getting ready for a performance from start to finish. The reader goes on a journey with the ballerinas from preparing for the show with practice, to performing the show, to finally getting to sit down and rest their feet. The story is just as strict as the life of a ballerina. The message is to teach children about the work that goes into a performance. The process of bringing the art of a ballerina, the art of Edgar Degas, and the art of a story into one children’s book is beautiful.
The peritext (on the last two pages) informs the reader that the illustrator is a French artist named Edgar Degas. His pastel paintings of ballerinas are truly elegant. Degas’s use of color is eye catching when it is time for the ballerina customs to shine. The text guides the reader to take notice of the colors in the illustration, “A fairy princess shines in green.” There is a strong point Edgar Degas makes with his paintings. The outside observer can tell the image is not a photograph but the paintings are done in such a way to make it feel like they are real life people.
The text is written poetically. The tone of the author is soft. “The teacher counts 1,2,3,4 and the dancers spin across the flour.” The reader can hear the beat of the music in parts of the text. The illustrator depicts the ballerinas as working so very hard. He shows them yawning and rubbing their tiered necks. Degas and the author tell two different stories to the reader at once. The author is telling the story through the point of view of the outside observer or audience. The illustrator is telling the story through the eyes of the hard working and exhausted ballerinas.
February 7, 2017
There are so many gimmicky boardbooks nowadays, so I've learned to be a little skeptical before adding them to my (son's) collection. Let's be honest, I love art, so I wanted a baby friendly way to introduce it to my toddler.
During my first read through, I was impressed with the rhymes and how they tied the artwork together into a story. The collection used in the book is fantastic and just lends itself to be used in this form. After a couple of reads, with my toddler, I think he doesn't care for ballerinas, but the text makes it easy to read through and doesn't bore him either. It makes it easier for untrained eyes (my hubby) to figure out what to be explaining. I think that makes for a strong book.
All in all, this is one of the better mini masters books. Degas has appealing and cohesive art to work well in this form. I like the boardbook format, but the book is great for all ages, rather than just babies, so a larger version would be great for the classroom.
During my first read through, I was impressed with the rhymes and how they tied the artwork together into a story. The collection used in the book is fantastic and just lends itself to be used in this form. After a couple of reads, with my toddler, I think he doesn't care for ballerinas, but the text makes it easy to read through and doesn't bore him either. It makes it easier for untrained eyes (my hubby) to figure out what to be explaining. I think that makes for a strong book.
All in all, this is one of the better mini masters books. Degas has appealing and cohesive art to work well in this form. I like the boardbook format, but the book is great for all ages, rather than just babies, so a larger version would be great for the classroom.
April 16, 2008
A fun little board book that introduces your little one to fine art. I enjoy this book and the others in the set as much as my baby.
April 10, 2012
a great board book to introduce kids to the art of degas
January 9, 2015
Such a great way to introduce classic art to children! Beautiful selection of Degas portraits!
September 16, 2013
loved reading my girls these books when they were little.
November 5, 2016
This is one I really like. It is easy to read and it uses important piece of art. What could be a better introduction to art appreciation?
December 17, 2016
I mostly got this book to balance out the two science books I got my baby niece, but I also love the idea of introducing children to art like this.
February 7, 2017
The beauty of Degas set to flowing poetic rhymes. Perfect for my tutu wearing totschooler.
September 28, 2017
A very well-designed and illustrated board book, written in rhyme, and designed to introduce young children to ten paintings of ballerinas by Edgar Degas.
July 1, 2022
This title is part of a series of board books on well known artists showing ten of their paintings which are sequenced in an order that allows the author to write a storyline about the about the paintings. The ten paintings shown in this title were done by Degas who did many paintings of the ballet, it’s dancers, and it’s musicians. Only two of the paintings were familiar to me as they are depicted in many books, “Rehearsal of Ballet” and “on Stage”. All but one of the paintings in this title are in public museums.
February 10, 2021
This book is different than many picture books for young children. The images are actually paintings by Degas. They have been organized in an order that tells a story, which the authors have crafted the words for. The rhyme and meter are basic and consistent, which is a good thing. The images chosen are absolutely breathtaking and can hold your attention as well as the child's.
October 4, 2022
Solid but the instruments page gets me - the instruments in the painting would fit perfectly into the rhyme scheme, but instead they talk about more popular instruments that aren't pictured. Missed learning opportunity!
January 7, 2021
Libro infantil muy corto pero me encanta que tenga pinturas famosas como ilustraciónes
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May 26, 2023Note to self: given to Riley for baby's birth, May 2023
October 30, 2023
I love ballerinas and can’t wait until I can start dance class because I love to spin.
January 10, 2025
Another beautiful book, and a great way to introduce young children to the work of this great artist.
February 14, 2025
This Mini Masters series is such a great addition to our board book collection. Beautiful art for babies.
November 16, 2025
Too simple for me, sorry. I bet if I had it in hand, rather than reading it on openlibrary.org, I'd have liked it more, though.
April 22, 2021
Elliot absolutely adores this book and requests in almost daily! It’s part of the Mini Masters collection (we also love the Monet one!). It couples selected Degas ballerina paintings with a lyrical phrase on each page. It’s a fun way to introduce the masterpieces to him!
* library book
* library book
August 10, 2008
Can't fault the art, it's a great way to introduce kids to Degas.
And the text... well, I can take it or leave it. It sounds trite to my ears, though, so I prefer to leave it. The author's got a tin ear when it comes to rhythm, nothing seems to scan right.
The really bad part about these books is that they're cheaply made. I've had them fall apart on me while other books that we've had longer and that we read more often are in great shape.
You can't have a poor-quality board book, it just doesn't work. I can't in good conscience recommend these books until that little problem is fixed.
And the text... well, I can take it or leave it. It sounds trite to my ears, though, so I prefer to leave it. The author's got a tin ear when it comes to rhythm, nothing seems to scan right.
The really bad part about these books is that they're cheaply made. I've had them fall apart on me while other books that we've had longer and that we read more often are in great shape.
You can't have a poor-quality board book, it just doesn't work. I can't in good conscience recommend these books until that little problem is fixed.
April 24, 2013
We read the similar book about Van Gough during letter V week, and I was surprised that these pulled the artwork together with believable text rather than being a glorified flashcards. I took this one out because Natalie likes ballerinas, but she hasn't read it with me yet. It gives exposure to the masterful artwork just like a regular book. Not impressed that its a board book, though. Not for the toddler set.
Read
November 18, 2016This book is for younger readings, first book. It's describes a dancers routine in rhythmic poetry. It starts with them tieing their shoes and ends with them needs rest.
This book would be so sweet for young girls dreaming of being ballerinas. I can see a class full of 5 year olds getting very excited about the pictures and showing a teacher their dances.
This book would be so sweet for young girls dreaming of being ballerinas. I can see a class full of 5 year olds getting very excited about the pictures and showing a teacher their dances.
Currently reading
December 31, 2010Especially for her first novel, very very good. As a dancer
I may be biased, but I like it.
I may be biased, but I like it.
April 29, 2012
A slow start, but got better as it went on. An interesting look at the art and ballet world of Paris, if true.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews