B reviews,  Bug,  sponsored post

The Nutcracker: A Magic Theatre Book (a review)

Nutcracker Book on chair

I have the most beautiful, magical, amazing children’s book to share with you. Sometimes reviews are difficult for me to write because I hate to say anything bad about a product that has been given to me by someone who is paying me to write about it. But I also want to be truthful to you readers because my word is my word after all. So you can imagine how wonderful it is when I sign up for a product I that would rave about without even being paid. This book is that product. I don’t think I can rave about it enough. It’s so pretty! So beautifully illustrated! I just want to eat it! I think my photos will tell you all you need to see but I’ll rattle on anyway.

The princess reads

I bribed Bug with frozen yogurt and a trip to a local nail salon to get her to pose for these photos because, as you know, she’s not a girly girl anymore and she only likes to be seen wearing black, preferably black Hello Kitty. But to tell you the truth, when she opened up this book and we talked about dressing up to play a part in one of her favorite ballets, you should have seen the gleam in her eye. She might lead you to believe she’s too much of a tomboy to wear tutus and prance around to Tchaikovsky but she’s totally fooling herself. That girly-girl is still in there and she loved this book. We both do.

reading

Bug can read now so it’s twice as much fun. I’ve seen the Nutcracker on stage but Bug has not yet though she’s heard about it plenty and seen small parts of it when the big girls performed at her dance recital. She’s seen Swan Lake with her dad and loved it. So I think it’s time we got tickets to see The Nutcracker now that the holiday season is so quickly approaching. I know! I’m sorry! I hate to be the one to remind you.

peeking through

This book is the perfect introduction to the famous story. I love how touchable it is even though it is a pop-up book. I’ve long been frustrated with pop-up books. They are usually written for really young children but really young children love to rip up pop-up books. This book is can be appreciated by just about anyone at any age. I love looking at it. How the characters pop into the circle when you turn the page is fascinating.

Here’s a movie so you can see for yourself:

Isn’t it pretty? I wish snow fell when you turned the pages but that’s just a special effect of the movie. It does make me want to scoot closer to my heater and look out a window at snow that is not there. It’s fun to dream…

pretty cut outs

The Black Cat Flashlight stands in for Captain Nutcracker

Here is Bug with her Black Cat flashlight that also has a jaw that snaps up and down like a nutcracker. She was in character to say the least.

fluttering

beautiful illustrations

Thank you, Nutcracker, for bringing back my old Bug to me. I missed her.

reading 2

dress-up unleashed

It’s a good thing I never got rid of all her old dress up clothes.

ballerina feet

swan

silly princess

So if you have a girly-girl in your life or someone who loves ballet as much as we do, I say: you must get this book. It’s so pretty and very well made. You can buy it here and I have a 25% discount for you if you purchase it before November 30th, 2012. Just enter the promo code NUTCRACKER when you check out.

And guess what?!! I have one beaufiful book to give away. It’s sitting on my bookshelf right now so we don’t even have to worry about it being shipped from the manufacturer. I’ll send it to you personally. Bug might even write you a little note to go with it.

The Nutcracker

Feeling lucky? Just comment below about what is special to you when you think of The Nutcracker and I will randomly pick one winner next Monday. I can’t wait to hear your stories!

56 Comments

  • Jennifer S

    Both of my girls have taken ballet so we love any book about ballet. We have a cheap, cheap book of the Nutcracker and my youngest daughter would LOVE this one.. We read it year round and alot more at Christmas. Would love this for my daughters. thanks

  • Kelli

    My daughter went with me and her grandmother last year and loved it! Her friend was an Angel and she enjoyed practicing with her before the show. She enjoys reading the coffee table book that we have, but a book intended for a child would be a wonderful addition to our library.

  • Stacy

    Last year, we took our 3-year-old to her first Nutcracker and bought her a special nutcracker to take with her. This year, we’ve already got our tickets to see The Nutcracker again and we’re scouting nutcrackers everywhere we see them. She asks every day “Is today The Nutcracker??” so I’m very happy that we started a family tradition that she loves!

  • JennyCNo3

    What a gorgeous book! Thanks for sharing :) When I think about The Nutcracker I automatically think of the ballet … the enchanting music (*love* a full orchestra), beautiful dancers and choreography and fantastic costumes. It’s so magical and I can’t wait to take my little girl one day to see it too :)

  • Helena

    What a wonderful book! The Nutcracker is very special in our home. When Kyra was seven and then again at eight, she was chosen to perform in The Nutcracker with Canada’s National Ballet Company. She was a mouse one year and a lamb the next year. It was such a wonderful experience and I’m sure it’s something that she’ll remember her entire life. (I’ll have to post photos sometime.) We have a poster from the performance and I bought her a nutcracker as a keepsake, but we don’t actually have a copy of the story so it’s something that I’ve been hoping to get one day. The one you’ve reviewed is one of the nicer ones I’ve seen.

  • Alexandra

    What an amazing book. I have great memories of dressing up and getting to go see the Nutcracker ballet as a child–even though I knew the story so well, it felt new every time. And the music is the best!