She Kept Dancing

September 15, 2023
How Mesher became Radio City's first visibly disabled dancer. Sydney was born with just five fingers, but her 10 toes caught her mother's eye first: Sydney, she declared, would be a dancer. Confirming Mom's prediction, Sydney was "twirling, swaying, and leaping" before she could crawl. When young Sydney entered dance class, however, some kids called her a monster. Fortunately, Sydney heeded Mom's advice: "Keep dancing." In college, she became one of the first female backup dancers for K-pop group BTS. A broken foot made her stumble but was fortunately only "intermission"; she obtained a dance degree and landed modeling gigs, hoping to encourage others like her. Her biggest dream, though, was to be a Radio City Rockette in New York City. Despite several rejections, she tried "one / more / time"...and became the first Rockette with a visible disability. Both text and illustrations eloquently evoke dancing's expressive capacity. Sydney's sadness is "a slow dance with many turns and sweeping gestures"; after she realizes that not wearing a prosthetic hand feels more natural, her self-confidence becomes "a wild freestyle number." Quek's fluid cartoon illustrations use space and perspective to emphasize Sydney's emotions. Aspiring dancers will especially enjoy her journey, and readers with limb differences will find reassurance that their bodies, too, are "worth celebrating." Sydney presents white; background characters are racially diverse. Affirming and uplifting. (author's note from Mesher, photos) (Picture-book biography. 4-7)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 16, 2023
Written with Laudone, Mesher’s personal tale centers persistence in following a dream alongside a message of “celebrating different body types using a language everyone could understand: dance.” Mesher was born “with ten toes and five fingers. But it was her toes that Mom noticed first,” informing her mother’s belief that Mesher would become a dancer. The third-person narrative follows Mesher through childhood years of dance classes to a performing arts high school, and finally to various professional pursuits in New York City where—after several rejections as well as an “intermission” due to a broken foot—she achieves her wish of becoming a Rockette, Radio City’s first visibly disabled dancer. The honest, sensitive voice doesn’t shy away from representing the cruel words that Mesher endured (“Others called her a monster”), while also capturing the joy of “turning, swaying, and leaping.” Depicting characters with a variety of skin tones, Quek’s figure-focused cartoon art enlivens the pages with energetic depictions of movement. A personal note from Mesher concludes. Ages 4–8.

September 22, 2023
Preschool-Grade 3 Professional dancer Sydney Mesher, born with one hand, is the first Radio City Rockette with a visible disability. Cowritten with Laudone, this picture-book biography shines a spotlight on Sydney's empowering message of "celebrating different body types." Her penchant for "twirling, swaying, and leaping" starts in childhood. At dance class and in school, Sydney faces unkind comments from kids who have never met anyone with a limb difference before. Encouraged by her mother to "keep dancing," she follows her joy. The approachable text captures her love for the art form and her positivity: "No two dances were the same. Each one was beautiful because it was different--just like how Sydney's body was beautiful because it was different." Sydney's determination and perseverance are highlighted, as well as challenges she overcomes along the journey to dance on the stage of Radio City Music Hall. Quek's effervescent digital illustrations are full of motion and emotion. Photographs and a "Note from Sydney" round out this inspiring introduction to an athlete gracefully kicking down disability barriers and misconceptions.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.