THE BALLERINAS

The complicated world of ballet is beautiful, brutal, and dramatic in this audiobook. Ell Potter offers a skilled narration from the point of view of Delphine, a dancer turned choreographer who is newly returned to the Paris stage of her ballerina youth. In her appealing British voice, Potter is crisp and capable with both exposition and dialogue. However, the overly long plot makes unpredictable time-shifts that can be hard to follow despite date labels, and these can interfere with the flow of the story. Similarly, some accents are inconsistent, unclear, or implausible, which can also give one pause; it might have been better to forgo specific accents altogether. Nonetheless, the story is compelling enough to hold one's interest, and Potter does a fine job overall. L.B.F. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2022]