teeganduke's review
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Sophie is my bae. Glad she got to embrace Auslan! I enjoyed Mary’s honesty and willingness to admit her shortcomings. It was great to read about her incredible career and to compare the differences in opinions on deafness back 25 years ago to today.
bookstorian's review
4.0
I had absolutely no idea this book was coming out until a colleague mentioned it to me, I am so glad that she did too as it was a beautiful story that deserves it's own standing ovation. I downloaded this read through Audible and listened to it whenever I can.
Here are my thoughts as I read:
-I really liked listening to Mary's family background and how she become a Ballerina, even though she is from Rockhampton!
-Her ballet school sounded so wonderful and supportive, even within a competitive environment of dance.
-I loved listening about her early career. He move to London in the 70s, a place that would have been oh-so different to Rockhampton and so far away from her family in the days when instant messaging, mobile phones and picture messages were non-existent.
-Her rehearsal and travelling schedule were so gruelling. How awesome to travel around the world doing what you love.
-It felt like I was reliving her moments on stage with her as she described her movements, costumes and feelings of performance.
-Lovely to listen to her side of the love story with Li. So captivated yet I had to Google the photos, a physical copy of the book would have been loaded with them though I bet!
-Great to hear about Li's Chinese culture from Mary's perspective. Learning so much about this part of the world.
-How is it that Mary records her conversations with so much clarity??
-Mary's insight into raising a child with profound deafness is so eye opening.
-Amazed at Li's impact on Queensland Ballet, ashamed that I have never seen a QB show. Need to get onto that pronto in the new year!!
-I adore that the story continually cycles back to the mother-daughter relationship, one that is the most important. Sophie's tenacity in helping Mary write her story just shows the deep drive and determination that Mary instilled in Sophie.
This is a memorable memoir and if you like this genre I would highly recommend. Especially if you work within the arts. Mary's story is so harrowing and inspirational. It is a beautiful story about a mother's relationship with her daughter and the power of ballet. It teaches you so much more than just how to dance and this is a fact that is just too unknown about many of our arts industries.
Here are my thoughts as I read:
-I really liked listening to Mary's family background and how she become a Ballerina, even though she is from Rockhampton!
-Her ballet school sounded so wonderful and supportive, even within a competitive environment of dance.
-I loved listening about her early career. He move to London in the 70s, a place that would have been oh-so different to Rockhampton and so far away from her family in the days when instant messaging, mobile phones and picture messages were non-existent.
-Her rehearsal and travelling schedule were so gruelling. How awesome to travel around the world doing what you love.
-It felt like I was reliving her moments on stage with her as she described her movements, costumes and feelings of performance.
-Lovely to listen to her side of the love story with Li. So captivated yet I had to Google the photos, a physical copy of the book would have been loaded with them though I bet!
-Great to hear about Li's Chinese culture from Mary's perspective. Learning so much about this part of the world.
-How is it that Mary records her conversations with so much clarity??
-Mary's insight into raising a child with profound deafness is so eye opening.
-Amazed at Li's impact on Queensland Ballet, ashamed that I have never seen a QB show. Need to get onto that pronto in the new year!!
-I adore that the story continually cycles back to the mother-daughter relationship, one that is the most important. Sophie's tenacity in helping Mary write her story just shows the deep drive and determination that Mary instilled in Sophie.
This is a memorable memoir and if you like this genre I would highly recommend. Especially if you work within the arts. Mary's story is so harrowing and inspirational. It is a beautiful story about a mother's relationship with her daughter and the power of ballet. It teaches you so much more than just how to dance and this is a fact that is just too unknown about many of our arts industries.
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