{"product_id":"the-nutcracker-chronicles-a-fairytale-memoir-paperback","title":"The Nutcracker Chronicles: A Fairytale Memoir - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eJanine Kovac\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePerfect for \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker \u003c\/i\u003eholiday market and fans of work\/life balance books, this memoir of a ballet dancer-turned-literary curator shares the real-life journey of a dancer, wife, and mother.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker Chronicles\u003c\/i\u003e, a modern twist on the beloved holiday ballet, intertwines the story of Clara and her nutcracker prince with the true-life stories that unfold backstage. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe curtain rises on Ballet El Paso's production of \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e, where young Janine Kovac is cast as Fritz, the boy who breaks the nutcracker. Her director is Ingeborg Heuser, a German woman who once performed for Hitler and who peppers her teaching with insults like, \"Why can't you just dance like a pretty girl?\" At least it's better than \"You look like a cow on ice skates,\" which is what the other girls hear daily. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOnstage, Janine wins the battle and embarks on a voyage through a snowy forest to the Land of the Sweets, where she serves as spectator to a beautiful dance. She also travels offstage, leaving El Paso to study at San Francisco Ballet before landing a job in Iceland and returning to California, where she rises through the ranks from soldier to snowflake to candy soloist. Eventually, however, she is relegated to watching other people dance--her husband, her children, her students--and her claim to the spotlight is replaced by the quest to find joy in her new roles.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eJanine Kovac\u003c\/b\u003e enjoyed a twelve-year career as a professional ballet dancer in Iceland, Italy, San Francisco, and her hometown of El Paso, Texas. Outside of the ballet world, her distinctions include UC Berkeley's Glushko Award for Distinguished Research in Cognitive Science, an Elizabeth George Foundation Fellowship from Hedgebrook, and the Calderwood Fellowship for Journalism from MacDowell. Janine is the author of \u003ci\u003eBrain Changer: A Mother's Guide to Cognitive Science\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eSpinning: Choreography for Coming Home\u003c\/i\u003e, which received a National Indie Excellence Award. In addition to dancing in \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e, she's rehearsed \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e, she's choreographed sections of \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e, and, most of all, she's sat through \u003ci\u003eThe Nutcracker\u003c\/i\u003e. Janine lives with her family in Oakland, California.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 216\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.6 x 8.4 x 5.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e November 12, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47381248671922,"sku":"9781647427924","price":17.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/3891\/1666\/files\/6af3f4f69a40513a515871dbbecc0fa7.webp?v=1777805758","url":"https:\/\/box.dadyminds.org\/products\/the-nutcracker-chronicles-a-fairytale-memoir-paperback","provider":"DADYMINDS BOX","version":"1.0","type":"link"}