No Ballet Shoes in Syria

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Night Mayor Franklefink has vanished from the Transylvanian Express - and it's up to you to solve the case! Part of the Solve Your Own Mystery seri... When I was eleven I adored Noel Streatfeild’s Ballet Shoes and Pamela Brown’s The Swish of the Curtain, and was so fixated on Lorna Hill’s Sadler’s Wells ballet books – each of which I had read at least ten times – that eventually my mum decided enough was enough. She prised my tattered copy of Veronica at the Wells out of my hands and gave me a pile of new reading material, which included The Silver Sword, When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, and The Diary of Anne Frank. That was when I discovered that there was a new kind of book to love – stories that could open your eyes, change the way you saw the world, make you ask questions, expand your horizons, enrich your soul – switch on lightbulbs in your head! Today I am delighted to welcome Catherine Bruton to the blog to talk about the books that inspired her to write the remarkable, ‘No Ballet Shoes in Syria.’ I was incredibly touched by the story of eleven year old Aya who has fled from the war in Syria to seek asylum in England. Ava is doing what no eleven year old should ever have to do, she is holding her family together. Her mother is drowning in grief and is unable to speak English, so the burden of looking after her younger brother and trying to deal with the authorities falls to her. It would be almost unbearable to read a story that is so desperately sad but Catherine shows the reader that inside Aya is more than what others see her to be. She may be viewed as an asylum seeker but in her heart she’s a dancer and a chance encounter with a local ballet teacher changes her life forever. Hauntingly sad but ultimately hopeful this is one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read. I cried, I laughed and smiled my way through this extraordinary story which needs to be in every school. Wonderfully empathetic and incredibly inspiring, I felt emotionally wrung out by this moving story. A complete triumph in every way.

Eleven-year-old Aya has arrived in Britain from Syria. She has left her homeland behind, lost her father and is holding the rest of the fragile family together, responsible beyond her years. When she glimpses the dancers in the community centre's ballet class, she longs to dance again - ballet was one of the things she left behind. One day, whilst waiting in the interminable queue in the community centre to fill in endless forms she doesn't really understand, Aya hears music and is drawn to the ballet class taking place in another room. When Aya is asked to join the class and audition for ballet school, she begins to believe that a better, more hopeful life might be possible. When I discussed the idea with my editor at Nosy Crow, we were both conscious of the difficulties of writing about events that are happening now – complex, potentially troubling issues that we would be asking young readers to confront without the distance of history. I have a quote from one of my favourite writers, Alan Gibbons, above my desk: “I never enter a dark room unless I can light the way out.” That’s what I wanted to do – to confront difficult issues, in a way that didn’t offer glib solutions or whitewash the truth, but which did offer the consolation of hope.

By Author / Illustrator

I really enjoyed this well-balanced and inspiring story. Aya is a spirited and determined character, often torn between her own ambitions and caring for her family. She makes friends but also experiences jealousy and prejudice and it is not until her full story is revealed towards the end of the book that many of the other characters truly understand the devastation and horror she has overcome.

A breath-taking, epic adventure, spanning the icy wastes of the Arctic Tundra to the vaudeville circus of New York, from the award-winning author of No Ballet Shoes in Syria and Another Twist in the Tale . In terms of the plot and characters, nothing to write home about. It was a fairly generic and simple plot and the ending was a little too neat for my liking, but again, this is likely due to this book being for a middle grade audience. The characters were also not massively fleshed out and many of them (particularly Dotty) sometimes felt like caricatures. This was the other book that was in my mind as I conceived the idea for No Ballet Shoes in Syria. This classic tale of children journeying through war-torn Europe towards Switzerland where they believe they will be reunited with their parents had a profound effect on me as a young reader, offering a remarkable insight into the reality of Europe laid waste by war. It’s not a story that shies away from difficult truths, but it is irradiated by hope, by small acts of kindness – something which I really tried to capture in No Ballet Shoes in Syria too. But at the same time, Aya and her family must fight to be allowed to remain in the country, to make a home for themselves and to find Aya’s father – separated from the rest of the family during the journey from Syria.Aya is new to England - she's only been in Manchester for 3 weeks with her Mumma and her little brother, Moosa. She's come because her homeland, Syria, is currently torn apart by war and it's not safe for her family to live there anymore. No Ballet Shoes in Syria is a beautiful story of hope, belief and community spirit against the obstacles of ignorance, prejudice and a minefield of rules and regulations. Catherine Bruton creates a wonderful mix of emotions through Aya; her hopes, her frustrations, her sadness, her fears. By carefully unravelling the plight of one family of refugees, we see the reasons for leaving, the dangerous journey, the loss, the difficulties faced (en route and in situ); interleaved with the hopes and wishes of a young girl, the need to belong, the desires to be accepted, the injustice faced. This story takes the reader on an emotional journey. The pureness of Aya's voice is heart-wrenchingly honest and so utterly captivating. Now it’s time to weave in object number two. Don’t forget to describe it – make it come alive for the reader. How does this object come into the tale? The role of object number two is to help introduce a complication to your story? An obstacle that might prevent your character from achieving what they want. Over to you …. For more information and to see Catherine discussing her inspiration for the book and reading the opening chapters, visit www.nosycrow.com

Sometimes I was jealous of the monster of Frankenstein. I grew up believing my father cared more for him than he did for me. And was I wrong? Oleg Ivenko (right) as Rudolf Nureyev and Ralph Fiennes as his teacher Alexander Pushkin in The White Crow (2018). Photograph: Landmark Media/AlamyPossible idea for improvement? A GLOSSARY. I am a huge fan of helpful glossaries, and I would really have liked an illustrated glossery explaining the ballet terms. Also, the Syrian words. And the terms used to describe refugees throughout the book (asylum seekers, I can't remember now but I know there was other interesting lingo too). Okay, maybe this book needs 3 separate glossaries. I just think it would add that extra informative layer. Misty Copeland performs in Swan Lake for the American Ballet Theatre in 2014. Photograph: Darren Thomas/AP A shell from the beach reminds her of the boat trip across the Mediterranean in the storm, of the boat capsizing, of the last time she saw her father. Despite me not being the target audience for this story, I thought it was a worthwhile read anyways. Sure, the writing wasn't anything spectacular and the plot a bit simplistic despite the serious subject matter, the message behind the words was very important and something children should definitely be exposed to. In No Ballet Shoes in Syria I tell the story of 11 year old Aya who has just arrived in Britain with her mum and baby brother, seeking asylum from war in Syria. When Aya stumbles across a local ballet class, the formidable dance teacher Miss Helena spots her exceptional talent and believes Aya has the potential to earn a prestigious ballet scholarship. But at the same time Aya and her family must fight to remain in the country, to make a home for themselves and to find Aya’s father – separated from the rest of the family during the perilous journey from Syria.