Plum Fantastic

Sugar Plum Ballerinas #1

by Whoopi Goldberg, Deborah Underwood, Maryn Roos (Illustrator)

Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson does not want to be a beautiful ballerina, and she does not want to leave her friends in Apple Creek. Unfortunately, that doesn't stop her ballet-crazy mother from moving them to Harlem, or from enrolling Al at the Nutcracker School of Ballet.


Life is hard when you’re the new ballerina on the block, and it’s even harder when you’re chosen to be the Sugar Plum Fairy in the school recital! Not only is Al a terrible dancer, but she's also got a rotten case of stage fright! Al's ballet classmates are going to have to use all the plum power they’ve got to coach this s cary fairy!

Genres: Chapter Books, Childrens, Middle Grade, Cultural, Realistic Fiction, African American, Fiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 21, 2008

About the author

Whoopi Goldberg is one of an elite group of artists who have won the EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards) and is the bestselling author of the Sugar Plum Ballerina series, Book, and Is It Just Me? While performing in the Bay Area she created the characters that became The Spook Show and evolved into her hit Broadway show, Grammy Award–winning album, and the HBO special that helped launch her career. Spanning decades, Whoopi’s credits include roles in the well-known films The Color Purple, Ghosts of Mississippi, Sister Act, and Ghost. She produced the documentary Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley, and she appeared in and was one of the producers of the critically acclaimed 2022 feature film Till. She loves VW Bugs, working casinos, and comfortable clothing; is a passionate supporter of the audio arts and dedicated collector of audiobooks; and heads the Whoopfam Group, makers of Emma & Clyde, Whoopi & Maya, and other recreational and medicinal marijuana products.

Reviews

[Mitticus · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Sugar Plum Power!”

This was really cute. When Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson's mom moves them to Harlem, she is not happy to leave home and friends. She dreams with skate racing and not ballet, but her mom is so insistent. Worse than starting in a new place, with new girls, new teacher when you are 9 years old? ... to cause a sensation with the extravagant clothes that her mother makes!

A story about friendship, family, perseverance. Brave girls. And plus - diversity.



I love ballet. I used to have an all-year ticket for the season when I lived in the capital city. There are so few non-white prima ballerinas, and I think that is good to encourage to break with stereotypes.

[Bookishrealm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a beautiful book and I really enjoyed it! The illustrations were beautiful and you're able to learn so many new terms associated with ballet. I like that the main character gets the chance to build self confidence and make new friends that come from so many different backgrounds. It's a wide range of diversity. It's definitely well written and I would recommend for those at a 3rd to 4th grade reading level. It's a great way to also introduce diversity to a younger age group.

[ReGina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially, I thought this was a much younger book with a much younger age appeal. However, Sugar Plum Ballerinas is really good for fourth grade (high third can read it; I think it would still hold interest for struggling fifth). It tells the story of Alexandra who moves from Georgia to Harlem. She wants to be a world-class skater, but her mother wants her to be a world-class ballerina. She enrolls her in Nutcracker School of Ballet. She's trying to adjust to her new life, though she really just wants to move back home. Then, she gets chosen for the Sugar Plum Ballerina - she can't do turns and she has horrible stage fright! How will she get through it all?

This is a good story that has lots of "other" nuggets. Brenda speaks backwards because Leonardo da Vinci did and he was a genius. Epatha has an Italian grandmother and a Puerto Rican grandmother, so she speaks both Italian and Spanish as well as the warring grandmothers each serve a food of their culture. The majority of the characters are African-American, though race is never an issue in the book. And it introduces ballet, which may be of interest to some kids who don't have real exposure to it. This is a good book that can appeal to a lot of audiences.

[Kittiya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sara loved this story at first. as we read on though she is quickly losing her interest. I still think that this is a very charming book so far.

Well I finished it and really liked it. But as for Sara she just wanted to know what happened but didn't want me to read it to her. I liked how the girl supported each other as they where just becoming friends. How it taught you that things are not what they may seem and to not lose hope in your dreams. That it's good to try new things, REALLY give them a try to see what you think of them. In all a sweet story of friendship and sticking with goals.

[Lupita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book.

[Natya Camper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Al has just moved from Georgia and is taking ballet classes at the nutcracker school of ballet. Ballet isn’t her favorite thing to do she likes speed skating better but her mother wants her to become a ballerina because that’s what she thinks her daughter loves. At the nutcracker cracker school they have a drawing of who would get a lead dance position and Al wins which is bothersome to her because she has stage fright. Her friends in the class believes that she’s happy about her new role but she really is not. Her friends helped her with her stage fright and used teamwork to help her be able to kill her performance and beat her fear of stage fright. I think the book was really cute and not only is the book about dance but also friendship and meets the theme of although you may struggle with something if you have a team of people that care and love you, you can be successful in anything that you do.

[Naomi Yarbrough · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a childhood favorite and a cute little 160 page book to get me through a slump 🫶🏾! I love how Black this book is from the AAVE and culture down to the realistic features of every black girl pictured…yes there are pictures it’s a children book after all🤭i will be passing this book on to my daughters :)

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so cute! Alexandrea Petrokova Johnson wants to be a speed skater NOT a ballerina but when she moves to New York with her mother she takes ballet classes at the Nutcracker School of Ballet. Alexandrea has some ups and downs as she adjusts to her new life but with the help of friends she learns to appreciate ballet and helps her mother's costume desiging business stay afloat.

Such a cute book! I hope the next in the series are just as enjoyable. The characters and unique enough to be fun and I appreciate the way the book subtlety highlights Harlem and historical African American ballet dancers. Great!
Ages: 7-10

[Ellora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! It was really fun to read. It's about a girl named Alexandrea that moves to New York and her mom wants her to be a dancer.
Ellora, age 9

[Eve Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The aspects of this book that I like for young readers are: dealing with transitions, managing situations that you can't control, and developing community.

Dealing with transitions: Alexandrea and her mom move from the south to Harlem which is a massive cultural change for her. While she doesn't like ballet at first because it is not something she wants to do, it gives her a community. This helps her through her cultural and physical transition.

Managing situations you have no control over: Alexandrea hates ballet. It is her mother's dream and she's horrified when she's picked for the lead role of Sugar Plum Fairy. After finding accidental inspiration, her friends use books, practice and common sense to help her overcome the things holding her back. This gives them a common goal to work towards and bond over so it creates and then strengthens their community.

The book was nicely done and had lots of great strategies for a young person to consider in helping them overcome challenges.

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alex is a young girl who enjoys her friends and her hometown in Apple Creek, but one thing she doesn't really like is ballet, now her mother on the other hand is a bit obsessed with ballet and wants her daughter to be a ballerina. Her mother and Alex both move to Harlem to sign her up to join the Nutcracker School of Ballet in Harlem. Alex has her heart set on ice skating and of course her mother doesn't like the idea of ice skating. Along the way Alex meets new friends and things tend to change for both Alex and her mother. This books was a nice read, it's sad that the parent forces what they like and enjoy on their children knowing they don't like it but, it does have a good ending. For the classroom, I would tell the students it's okay to try new things, and it's okay to be different as long as you enjoy what you're doing, it'll be worth it in the long run.

[Lene · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, we discussed this book in class and most people disliked it for having bad representation and a conservative view of child education/up-bringing because of how the mum treats the main character, and while I see some of the criticism I also think overall the representation of girls of colour isn't that bad and besides that I think this book is written in a very fun way, I had to laugh several times and I really liked the characters (aside from the mum, probably). The ending could use a more modern edit, maybe.

[Elise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm actually surprised this book has over 4.0 average ratings- I'm sorry but the writing was SO hard to read out loud to my 6-year-old. However, as other reviews mention, it is a great way to introduce diversity and differing cultural backgrounds to young kids and my daughter did enjoy being read the book.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did now know that I needed a kid's book about ballet in my life but apparently I did! This was so cute and so nice. I think I've only ever read super serious, super dark, super angsty YA ballet books. It was nice to see that ballet can be fun, it doesn't have to be cutthroat (at least, I guess, not right away!), everyone gets to be a ballerina!

[Manda Marigold · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a young ballerina who hates ballet. Alexandrea only continues to do ballet to appease her mother. Alexandrea has a dream of being a speed skater. Alexandrea gets the lead role in the ballet recital so she must overcome her fears and or dislike of ballet to do her best. Overall this book is a cute story.

[Jessica Braun · Rating 3 out of 5]

We enjoyed this book and appreciate how the friends band together to help Al overcome her stage fright and learn the moves. Could do without the descriptions of the girls’ body types which is unnecessary and I definitely skip over those when reading this to my daughter.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute. Brenda was a bit insufferable, but I'm not the target audience for such things. Wholesome, minimal conflict, real-life experiences. A very easy read with a glossary of dance terms at the end. Love the celebration of the Black ballerina on the cover.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about a group of diverse girls who take ballet classes in NYC. A good back to hand to young chapter book readers who love ballet.

[Galaysha]

I've always wanted to read this book for a very long time im very excited than I finally have a chance to read this book " Hopefully you guys will let me read this book without all these changes " .

[Katherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[sonya · Rating 5 out of 5]

lovely 🎀

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So sweet! An excellent young reader's story.

[Antonio Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

ok

[Brittany Boggess · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kiddos and I really enjoyed this book.

[K.L. Bernard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson is not crazy about ballet, but her mother is. So much so, she has filled Alexandrea's room with everything ballet. Her bedroom mirror has pink ballet shoes painted around it, she has pink ballet shoe drawer handles, the lamp, comforter and pillowcases have ballet shoes too. Her mother was so obsessed with all things ballet that she moved them to Harlem New York so that Alexandrea could attend the Nutcracker School of Ballet and so that she could get a job designing costumes.
Ms. Debbe, the ballet instructor, announces that there will be a drawing for the Sugar Plum Fairy dance. All the class is excited with the exception of Alexandrea. She is not interested at all and feels that her chances are slim of being picked, because she has the competition of 23 other students. But as fate would have it, she is picked to be the Sugar Plum Fairy. Alexandrea is worried that she won't be able to learn the routine and once on stage, she will make a complete fool of herself in front of lots of people.
When she watches her favorite speed skater on television actually doing a ballet routine, she begins to have hope. She will need lots of help from her new friends at the Nutcracker school. Alexandrea is having fun and bonding with her new friends, until she comes home one day to find her mother has packed them up after two months of living in New York.
Goldberg has done an excellent job of introducing this wonderful story of ballet. Moving to a new town and making friends is tough for anyone. This is a quick read and a hilarious story that young girls will relate to. The back of the book has the definitions of the ballet terms used.

[Daisy Honeywell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because I love books for children, sometimes they have something magical that I can not find in the Young adults' books.
I could not care less if the writer is Whoopi Goldberg. I did not pick the book because she is famous and I did not judge the book because she is famous.
Well, the protagonist is Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson, a 9 y.o that, all of a sudden, is forced to live in Harlem with her mother where she will continue to study ballet ( as her mother wishes), but Aleksandrea doesn't want to be a ballerina, she dreams to be a speed-skater!
To change house, meet new friends, and keep doing what she does not want to do (ballet) is not easy for Aleksandrea, so she desperately wants to come back home. But her mother wants to have a career in New York. She is a stylist and thinks that Broadway needs her talent.
So Aleksandrea keeps to study dance and meanwhile, at the ballet classes, she meets some girls that later will become her friends.
Aleksandrea will learn to live in Harlem and will understand that, with fun and friends, ballet is not that bad.
The book is kinda cute but I think it is written for a very Young audience. It is not deep and nothing particular happens.Just pages and pages of... nothing.
At the end Aleksandrea and her friends skate all together, and she decides to do both ballet and skate and to remain in Harlem where her mother finally found a job thanks to her talent.
It is a nice book that I would reccomend to children of 7 years old. It's written very easily and nothing magical is inside it.
Probably I would read another book written by Whoppi Goldberg but I'd not espect anything.

[Annalise Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whoopi Goldberg did a wonderful job writing this popular children's book. It is a quick read, and it would be great for readers who are just beginning chapter books. The cover is extremely inviting to young girls because it uses many different shades of pink. The young ballerinas look like they are having a lot of fun, and their emotions would attract readers to this book. The illustrations throughout the book are black and white, but they do a wonderful job portraying emotion. These small images help to enhance the story, and compliment it really well.

This book is about a little girl named Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson. Her mother had always dreamed of being a ballerina, and forced those dreams onto her daughter.Her mother loves ballet so much that she even named Alexandrea after a famous ballerina. They move from Georgia to New York, where Alexandrea takes ballet classes. However, she does not like ballet classes, and is terrified of being on stage! She would much rather be a speed skater. When Al is chosen to be the sugar plum fairy her classmates help her to face her fears.

I really liked this story, and I think that young readers would feel the same way. It is easy to read, and all of the story fits together really well. This book would also make a good read aloud, but I am not sure that boys would be instantly attracted to the book because of the cover. Children who have had to move to a new town would be able to relate to this book, and Goldberg does a great job delivering a simple message to readers.

[Valerie Jenkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first saw the book, and I saw Whoopi's name as the author, I had some doubts about this book. From the first page to the last page the book was excellent an a good read. It also gave me a glimpse about the life of a ballerina. It provided terms that a ballerina may use or come across. This story also touch on the different lifestyle of someone that had left the south and adjusting to the north. Whoopi also did a great job in describing in detail of Alexandrea and her friends personalities and the level of skills in their ballerina activity. Her mom and her costume creations reminds me of a person with a dream, and does all she can do to make her dream come true. It is a book that a young girl in elementary or middle school that could identify with. It shows all the raw emotions that age group goes through when they do not want to do something. It also shows that a person can accomplished anything if they put their mind to it. The illustrations that Maryn Roos provides makes her black and white illustrations standout, and not too overwhelming. By her providing the front cover in pink gave it a princess touch to it.

[Amy Holiday · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's my review on my writing website, amyholiday.com!

This is a cute story, relevant for grades 3-4, I think. Alexandrea's mom is fun, and Al respects her, but Al is still put-upon to carry out her mother's childhood dream of being a ballerina. Even though Al wants to be a speed skater more than anything. Her new ballet school in Harlem is much fancier than the one at home in Georgia, and Al worries about fitting in. But she makes some new friends fast, and when she is chosen to dance the lead in a recital (her worst nightmare), her friends work together pull her through.

The characters are fun and unique, and Al has a great voice. The setting enhances the story, and the grown-ups (which I approach with caution in books for kids) fill out the plot dramatically. Great read for a middle grade dance student.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson’s mother dreams of her being a famous ballet dancer. Alexandrea, however, has other ideas. She goes to a new ballet class in a new city to appease her mother, expecting to hate it. The other girls in her dance class become her best friends, and she discovers that she enjoys ballet.
This book has some illustrations scattered throughout the book. The illustrations simply reiterate what is happening in the story, but are enjoyable. Several languages are featured in this story, including some Spanish and Italian. All foreign languages words are defined clearly.
Sugar Plum Ballerinas: Plum Fantastic is a wonderful book for children in second through fourth grade. They will relate to the characters, and enjoy the fact that the main group of friends is comprised of children from many different cultures.