Don’t Forget to Smile

Don’t Forget to Smile by Ariane Beeston (Black Inc.) PB RRP $19.99 ISBN 978-1-7606-456-70

Reviewed by Ann Harth (www.annharth.com )

Clara and Elle are competing to win the International Ballet Grand Prize at the Opera House in Sydney. Clara has been dreaming of a career as a principal dancer her entire life and will do almost anything to land a place at the Australian National Ballet School. Although this has not been a lifelong dream for Elle, she has a natural talent for ballet, and her TikTok following has exploded since she shared an “epic fail” in one of her dance classes.

As a talented newcomer to the class with a growing reputation on social media, Elle finds herself frozen out by Clara, who works night and day to strengthen her body and improve her craft. Clara is threatened by Elle’s dancing ability and annoyed that her rival doesn’t seem to appreciate her own talents.

Ben, another member of the class, also has his eye on the International Ballet Grand prize, but refuses to follow the strict gender assignments offered in classical ballet. He is driven to follow his vocation but wants the option of dancing either male or female roles.

The lives of these three talented dancers become entwined as the realities and pressures of the world of ballet are revealed. When a scandal involving a high-profile dancer erupts, they are each faced with choices. Their decisions could not only change their individual lives but also reveal and possibly influence the harmful culture that lies beneath the grace and smiles of the dancers.

Don’t Forget to Smile captures the lives of three young people willing to sacrifice everything to follow their dreams. They also learn to question just how much sacrifice may be too much.

I was drawn into this book from page one, as I related immediately to the main characters and was invested in all the characters’ journeys. In their individual ways, they reveal a world where the grace and smiles of the performers on stage hide darker expectations and the manipulation that can occur behind the scenes.

Ariane Beeston calls on her personal experience as a dancer, teacher and choreographer to create a realistic and powerful story set in a world many of us have never visited. Alternating chapters in Clara’s and Elle’s viewpoints invite us to dive deeply into each character.

I highly recommend Don’t Forget to Smile for young adults. It captures many timely and tricky topics with skill and sensitivity.