The Turning

By Gloria Whelan

Book Overview

In the spring of 1991, a Russianballerina dreams of leaving Leningrad -- forever. A member of the Kirov Ballet Corps, Tatiana hopes to be chosen for the troupe's Paris tour. Once there, she will try to escape the watchful eye of KGB agents, defect to France, and leave the complicated politics of the Soviet Union behind. But like ballet, leaving is harder than it looks. Tatiana becomes entangled in her country's struggle for democracy, and her dream of a better life in Paris is soon challenged by hope for her country's future. Tatiana must make a choice, and there will be no turning back. This companion novel to National Book Award winner Gloria Whelan's breathtaking epics angel on the square, the impossible journey, and burying the sun offers a riveting portrait of a nation, and a young woman, on the brink of spectacular change.

• Format: Library Binding
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060755946
• ISBN13: 9780060755942
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Length: 213 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.3" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Read this!!!

Best author ever. Also read Angel on the Square and Homeless Bird. Oh, Parade of Shadows, too.

Very good author

My middle-school-aged daughter is very picky about what she chooses to read. This book is part of a series of books by the same author. My daughter has read all of them and loves each one. This book is definitely worth buying and since they are set in Russia, each provides a sort of cultural experience as well.