Book Review: The Still Point by Tammy Greenwood *ARC
“She had never seen Bea dance like this. Ever sat spellbound as her daughter grew from a little girl into a woman before her eyes.”
Title: The Still Point
Author: Tammy Greenwood
Series? N/A
My Rating: ★★★★
Genre(s): Fiction
Age Range: Adult
Publication: Kensington (February 20, 2024)
CW: parent death, arson, mentions of body image issues / eating disorder
Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Dance Moms meets Big Little Lies meets Little Fires Everywhere in this ballet-centric suspense-drama.
This book is pitched as a cross between the iconic reality TV series, Dance Moms and the Celeste Ng novel-turned-TV-series, Little Fires Everywhere. But I would go one step further to say that there is a definite Big Little Lies vibe here, too. So if that’s your cup of tea, keep reading to find out what I thought about this book!
The Still Point follows three moms — Ever, Lindsay and Josie — as they grapple with their daughters entering their final year at a prestigious California ballet school. However, the ante is upped when a controversial figure in the ballet world comes to direct and document their production of The Nutcracker. At the end of the filming, he will select one student to receive a full scholarship to the Ballet de Paris Academie.
If there’s one thing I love in fiction, it’s stories about ballet.
I’m not even certain why that is or where the love comes from. I did dance for a decade as a kid/teen, but never ballet. Still, the mystery and allure of ballet thrills me. I consumed episodes of Dance Academy like it was my lifeline. So when I saw this book pop up on my feed, I knew I had to read it.
We always hear about ballet being a cutthroat world. I’m sure a lot of people picture crazed ballerinas whacking each other with pointe shoes (if you’ve ever seen that scene in Dance Academy, you might be right lol). But Tammy Greenwood handles the story with grace and integrity. In fact, her note reiterates that The Still Point is a “love letter to ballet” and that comes across in each stroke of her pen.
The thing about this book is that the characters are not inherently vindictive and ruthless… Okay, maybe some of them are. On the whole, however, this is a group of women and girls who are passionate and strong and tenacious. They each have a goal in sight — whether it’s for themselves or for their daughters — and they are relentless in their pursuit.
The hitch is Etienne Bernay. Etienne arrives on the scene almost solely to stir up trouble. While it makes for a gripping story, I also wanted to throat punch Etienne like, ninety percent of the time. He caused drama for his own personal amusement, making the girls dance like puppets, and seldom did he consider the wellbeing of his pupils.
Competition becomes rivalry and friend becomes foe.
One of the more intriguing aspects of this novel is the way in which the girls (primarily Bea, Olive and Savvy) are pitted against one another. The toxicity of their environment and their entanglement inevitably seeps into their lives. Etienne dangles the scholarship in front of the girls’ faces, using it to manipulate circumstances into very dark and often dangerous situations.
From the get-go, it’s clear that something disagreeable has happened between Bea and Olive. Once best friends, they barely acknowledge each other and Olive has turned her attention to the crown jewel of the studio, Savvy. Greenwood artfully leaves a breadcrumb trail of evidence between the ensemble of characters that brings readers to the events which ultimately lead Bea and Olive’s friendship to unravel.
It’s difficult to dive into the beauty of this novel without revealing the best parts of the plot, the ones you have to unearth during your own discovery. I will say that there's nothing I want more than to view the final footage of the documentary that was filmed in this studio. Now that would make for a good show.
The Still Point will capture the attention of those who love ballet and those couldn’t tell a plié from an arabesque.
Synopsis: Ever, Lindsay, and Josie have ushered their daughters—Bea, Olive, and Savvy—through years of dance classes in their coastal California town. They’ve tended bloodied feet, stitched ribbons to countless pairs of pointe shoes, and in the process, forged friendships that seem to transcend rivalry.
But now Etienne Bernay, enfant terrible of French ballet, has come to their conservatory. Not only will he direct this year’s production of The Nutcracker , but he’s brought along a film crew to document his search for one special student who will receive a full scholarship to the Ballet de Paris Academie. For the girls, this is the chance to fulfill lifelong dreams. For Ever, recently widowed and struggling financially, it may be the only way to keep Bea dancing. And Bea is a truly gifted dancer—poetic and ethereal, breathtaking to watch.
Lindsay, meanwhile, frets that Olive is growing tired of the punishing reality of training, while Josie has no such qualms about Savvy, who is a powerhouse of ambition.
From auditions to casting to rehearsals, the cameras capture the selection process, with its backstabbing and jealousy, disappointment and triumph. But it’s behind the scenes that Bernay’s arrival will yield the most shocking revelations, exposing the secrets and lies at the heart of all three families—and the sacrifices women make for their children, for friendship, and for art.
Are you a fan of media centred around dance? If you’ve seen Dance Academy, drop a comment below and let’s chat!
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