[As a child,] Ballet Shoes enveloped me. I entered the world of the three Fossils completely, sharing their classes, performances, and everyday routines. (p. 191)

The world the Fossils inhabit is very tidy and scheduled, governed by strict ideas of what is proper…. Despite its financial precariousness, their world is secure. Everyday life is the focus of the story, and we enter their world through details…. Detail is the key—clear, precise, essential. It helps create the enjoyable combination of the incredible—three orphans collected by an old eccentric and left with his young niece in a big old house—with the concrete.

Just as the daily routine is fully described, the characters are thoroughly portrayed. In many ways Ballet Shoes is a celebration of individuality. Each of the three Fossils is distinct, with her own talents, tastes, and personality. In the course of the story, each one develops differently and discovers what gives her happiness…. The contributions and responsibilities of the children are taken seriously, and the money they earn is essential. But they remain children. Each has a temper and a sense of humor; each has her share of bad days, tantrums, stubborn streaks.

It is interesting to note that a book written forty years ago, presenting a tightly regimented world in which proper upbringing and a strong work ethic is stressed, seems so contemporary in the roles it depicts and encourages for women. Not only are the three girls all active and spunky, but with the exception of Mr. Simpson and the missing Gum, all the important adults in the story are women who work, who have responsibilities and skills, who make decisions, solve problems, and live independent lives. Furthermore, at the end of the book each of the three Fossils chooses a career…. Self-sufficiency is shown as essential, and independence taken for granted.

Although twenty years have passed since I first read Ballet Shoes, the Fossils do not seem to show their age. The author's clean, concise style is lively, and her characters are still believable. Individuality and independence are not out of fashion; indeed, in female characters they are much in demand. Ballet Shoes reminds me that such strong characters are not a recent invention. But unlike so many self-conscious, two-dimensional female protagonists, created to be positive models or images, the Fossils and the adults in their lives are natural, spontaneous, and very much alive. It is not their function to make a political statement; their job is to entertain and engage the reader. The Ballet Shoes performance is a four-star success. Where it has not been a long-running hit, a revival should be scheduled. (pp. 191-93)