Even a dinosaur can learn to dance in James Howe's (Houndsley and Catina; Bunnicula) wonderful world of wishes fulfilled. In the opening spread, accompanying the line "Brontorina had a dream" and a sign reading "Madame Lucille's Dance Academy for Girls and Boys," Randy Cecil (whose hero in Duck knows something of pining for the impossible) teases readers with a long orange neck breaking in from the left, saying in a speech bubble, "I want to dance!" A proper elderly lady with her white hair tucked into a bun plants her arms on her hips and stands at the grand entrance of a formidable-looking stone building. Two children at the front of the group look on in wonder, their mouths shaped in small crescents, while five others standing behind look quite shocked, perhaps even frightened. "But you are a dinosaur," points out Madame Lucille in Cecil's next brilliantly choreographed illustration, as Brontorina's orange bulk envelops the entire picture, her neck curving back to reply, "True.... But in my heart I am a ballerina." The two wide-eyed, wonder-filled children turn out to be named Clara and Jack, and at their urging, Madame Lucille agrees to admit Brontorina to dance class.
Howe and Cecil comically exploit the possibilities of this outlandish scenario. The door is wide enough and the ceiling high enough in Madame's studio for Brontorina to step inside and even to plié. Relevé and jeté, however, are quite another matter. As plaster flutters to the floor, Madame Lucille exclaims, "What a graceful dancer you are, my dear!" But over the next weeks, Brontorina unintentionally puts the children (and piano) at risk, and Madame Lucille feels it's time to set Brontorina loose. Besides, she says, "How in the world will a male dancer ever lift you over his head?" A running subplot involving two naysayers with matching pink dresses and ponytails who disparage Brontorina's size and lack of footwear plays a part in buying Brontorina just enough time for Madame Lucille to formulate a new strategy. Once again, Clara and Jack help defend Brontorina's place in ballet class and contribute to the solution. Other witty jokes--in both words and pictures--will please dinophiles: the heroine's name is Brontorina Apatosaurus (a sly nod to the now-defunct term "Brontosaurus") and a closing silhouette depicts an uplifted Brontorina, thanks to the heroic biceps of a Triceratops. This prehistoric heroine for modern times will serve as inspiration to children everywhere who are willing to work to achieve their goals.--Jennifer M. Brown