Susan needed to work really, really hard to succeed, and even so, she didn't have the confidence of a champion and was too self-conscious in front of an audience. Both girls had enough talent to stand out among observers, but both fell just short of being really great. In some ways, Lalla reminded me of Susan in Tennis Shoes.
Harriet has no nurse or governess, but of course Lalla does, and Harriet gets to share hers.Īs with other "shoe books", this story featured a child with talent, and that talent was explored alongside other important character traits such as ambition and the ability to work hard. Throw in two industrious older brothers (I enjoyed the side story about Alec and his paper route) and a comic relief younger brother, and you get just the kind of family Lalla longs for. Though George, the father, may have been rather inept, Olivia, the mother, was loving and sensible. For the first time in a "shoe book", we see some really positive family dynamics at work. Though Lalla is certainly a primary character in the book, the true main character is Harriet, who has a wonderfully large family. Also, similar to the way adoptees were sometimes described as not "real" family members in Dancing Shoes, in Skating Shoes, the life of an only child is depicted rather sadly, making it perhaps not the best reading choice for insecure only children. Readers may recognize the unlikable aunt / kind, helpful uncle paradigm from Dancing Shoes. Like many other "shoe books", this book features an orphan, Lalla. This book is probably one of the most aptly named "shoe books" because skating shoes actually do play a role in the story. *** Warning!! This review contains spoilers!! ***
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