Jose! Born to Dance: The Story of Jose Limon

José was a boy with a song in his heart and a dance in his step. Born in Mexico in 1908, he came into the world kicking like a steer, and grew up to love to draw, play the piano, and dream. José's dreaming took him to faraway places. He dreamed of bullfighters and the sounds of the cancan dancers that he saw with his father. Dance lit a fire in José's soul.

With his heart to guide him, José left his family and went to New York to dance. He learned to flow and float and fly through space with steps like a Mexican breeze. When José danced, his spirit soared. From New York to lands afar, José Limón became known as the man who gave the world his own kind of dance.

¡OLÉ! ¡OLÉ! ¡OLÉ!

Susanna Reich's lyrical text and Raúl Colón's shimmering artwork tell the story of a boy who was determined to make a difference in the world, and did. José! Born to Dance will inspire picture book readers to follow their hearts and live their dreams.

"The mystery of the creative process comes through in this picture-book biography of dancer José Limón, born in Mexico in 1908. Reich's (Clara Shumann: Piano Virtuoso) poetic language evokes the sensual experiences of childhood that inspired the boy's artistic yearnings, while Colón's (My Mama Had a Dancing Heart) artwork, in earthy tones, captures a mood of sober intensity. When civil war causes José"s family to flee to the United States, he takes along memories of luscious fruit, flamenco dancers and marching soldiers. Readers may feel that the boy's move from drawing and painting to dancing seems abrupt, especially when he debuts onstage just six weeks after his first dance class, but the tale of how quickly he mastered English as a youngster hints at José"s early passion for mastering nearly everything. Colón's signature style with its visible scratch marks and swirling brushstrokes provide a grainy, textured quality that deftly combines a sense of movement and stillness, as when José enters a dance studio for the first time. The onomatopoeic phrases that run throughout the book help to demonstrate the richness of José"s experiences and how he brings them to bear on his style of dance: 'He learned to be fierce like a bullfighter-¡Olé!/ Strong like a soldier-¡Uno! ¡Dos! ¡Uno! ¡Dos!/ And proud like a king-pum! José"s story (he later became a world-famous choreographer) attests to the openness and perseverance that artistic passion requires. Ages 5-8." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

An award-winning author and an acclaimed illustrator tell the story of Jos Limon, who was born in a Mexican village in 1908, followed his heart to New York City, and changed the world of dance as one of the greatest modern dancers who ever lived. Full color.

Susanna Reich is the author of Clara Schumann: Piano Virtuoso, which was named an NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book, an ALA Notable Book, and a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year. A former professional dancer, Ms. Reich lives with her family in Ossining, New York.