Dance Academy
Series · 10 books · 2010-2012
Books in series
#1
Tara
Learning to Fly
2010
They've got the world at their feet, but have they got what it takes?
Fifteen-year-old Tara Webster has grown up on a farm in outback Australia and has dreamt of being a dancer ever since she was a little girl. When she makes it into the National Academy of Dance - the best school in the country - she is sure her life is about to be spectacular. What Tara doesn’t realise is how far behind she is in her training, and that there’s a whole lot more to surviving the Academy than just dancing...
It’s through Tara's eyes that we enter the world of the National Academy of Dance. This is the year Tara will leave her home on the farm and go into boarding school in Sydney; the year she will fall in love for the first time and have her heart broken. It’s a year of friendships and jealousies, triumphs and disappointments. This is the year she'll be tested. Does she have what it takes to be a dancer? Can she cope with the sacrifices she's required to make?
#2
Sammy
Real Men Don't Dance
2010
They've got the world at their feet, but have they got what it takes?
When Sammy Lieberman joins the National Academy of Dance he soon learns there’s a lot on his plate: overcoming his weak ankles, fighting his father’s determination that he should become a doctor and running from Saturday class to synagogue. But just when Sammy thinks he’s making progress his own feelings confront him with even greater challenges.
#3
Christian
Behind Barres
2010
They've got the world at their feet, but have they got what it takes?
Christian Reed is the kind of boy most teenage girls dream of - gorgeous, mysterious and angry with the world.
Christian likes to push his body to the max; the greater the risk, the more it interests him. Before his mother died, she made Christian promise that he’d audition for the National Academy of Dance. Christian kept his promise but never said he’d go if he got in. Instead, he ignores his letter of acceptance and continues to hang out with his fellow adrenaline-seeking mates. One night, Christian ends up in serious trouble with the police. Kicked out by his foster family, he arrives at the Academy not because he wants to be there but because he has no place else to go...
For a long time Christian remains a bit of a mystery. What isn't in question is his dancing ability. But while some of the girls swoon over Christian’s bad boy image, Tara finds him unbearable. Down-to-earth one moment, moody and aloof the next, Christian is the most infuriating boy she knows! As the year progresses Christian lets down his defenses, revealing a complicated person underneath. It’s a turbulent journey but slowly he begins to trust people again. And, gradually, Christian and Tara discover that love and hate can be two sides of the same coin.
#4
Kat
Anywhere But Here
2010
They've got the world at their feet, but have they got what it takes?
Sixteen-year-old Kat isn't sure what she wants to do in the future but she does know there’s more to life than dancing. If only her parents would realise it.
Kat’s mother is the National Ballet Company's principal ballerina and her stepfather is an acclaimed choreographer. It’s tough having celebrity parents and in the dance world this is as A-List as it gets.
As a result, Kat has no choice but to attend the Academy and pretend she looks pleased about it - which couldn’t be further from the truth.
Kat is naturally talented at ballet but finds her hip hop classes much more interesting.
Kat’s energy is infectious and her flair for mischief, legendary. She’s one of those people who can convince you to do anything. The perfect complement to Tara’s wide-eyed innocence, Kat stops her friend from getting too earnest with a healthy dose of realism and a naughty sense of humour.
Some people are afraid of failure but Kat is afraid of success. She loves her mother but doesn't want to end up like her. Kat and her stepbrother, Ethan, are used to taking care of themselves. Their parents are proud that the kids are so independent. Kat wishes just once they could be like a normal family. No one would ever guess how insecure she often feels...
#5
Abigail
Through the Looking Glass
2010
They've got the world at their feet, but have they got what it takes?
'I'm here to dance. the rest of you can play happy families.' Abigail has been dancing forever and is the best student in the class. It's not a title she's going to give up easily. Startlingly beautiful, she learnt long ago how to use her charisma to manipulate others. When Abigail wants something she can make you feel as if you're the whole world... and when she's got what she wanted she can end the privilege just as quickly. this year Abigail's body is changing and she regards it as a terrible betrayal. Suddenly, it's no longer so easy to be the thinnest or the best and Abigail pushes herself to work harder than anyone.She is a naturally gifted dancer but knows she's not perfect. Abigail isn't a horrible person but she believes ballet is everything and she will do whatever it takes, even if means stepping over every friend she's got in the process. Besides, on the rare occasion she tries to let other people in, it never works out the way she planned. And so Abigail figures since everyone already thinks she's a bitch, she may as well be the biggest bitch she can be. But when things get tough, is loneliness too high a price to pay for reaching the top? this year, bit by bit, Abigail learns the value in friendship. Begins on ABC1at 5.30 pm on Monday 31 May and screens every week day until 5 July. thenScreens on ABC3 at 3.40 pm on 6 June, screening double episodes every Sunday through to end August
#6
Tara
Everything to Lose
2012
All your favourite DANCE ACADEMY characters are back... But will they survive Second Year? 9+ It's a new year and tara has returned to the Academy determined to work harder than ever before. But it's not long before obstacles start building up against a new rival from the Royal Ballet School, a jealous teacher and an injury that threatens to destroy her dream of becoming a world-class ballerina. At least she has Christian to depend on. Or is there yet another rival waiting in the wings? 9+
#7
Abigail
Nice Girls Finish Last
2012
All your favourite DANCE ACADEMY characters are back... But will they survive Second Year? 9+ After a summer workshopping her feelings, Abigail starts Second Year at the Academy with a new attitude. But being nice isn't easy... the competition is tougher than ever and opening up to people only results in getting hurt and making enemies. Abigail has always put ballet first. But could it be there's more to life than dance? 9+
#8
Kat
Breaking Pointe
2012
All your favourite DANCE ACADEMY characters are back... But will they survive Second Year? Ages: 9+ Kat has been given every opportunity a ballerina could dream of ... except the chance to find out who she is away from dancing. Now Kat's flunked out of the Academy and is heading off to regular school. She's determined to find her place in a world where her Karamakov surname doesn't mean anything. But will breaking up with ballet be that easy? Ages: 9+
#9
Tara
Catch Me if I Fall
2012
All your favourite DANCE ACADEMY characters are back... But will they survive Second Year? 9+ When tara is expelled from the Academy, it seems her dream of becoming a world-class ballerina is finally over. But tara is a fighter - and it's not long before she's back at the barre, with the biggest challenges of her life looming ahead of her. Will they make her or break her? 9+
#10
Kat
Second Chance
2012
All your favourite DANCE ACADEMY characters are back... But will they survive Second Year? 9+ Now Kat is back amongst her friends in the Academy, she expects things to go smoothly. Instead she finds herself totally alone. Her fellow First Years' seem to hate her, tara won't return her calls and something strange is going on with Christian. For once, dancing is her first love and nothing else seems to matters. But this year Kat's whole world could change forever. 9+
Authors
Sherryl Clark
Author · 15 books
Some of my first short stories were crime fiction, and although in the last 20 years I have focused a lot more on writing children's and YA books, I've kept going with my crime writing. The first two novels are now stowed somewhere in the back of my filing cabinet! But "Trust Me, I'm Dead", first draft written in 2009, was shortlisted for the CWA Debut Dagger and then published by Verve Books in the UK. What a journey with that novel. I love the character, a grumpy woman (secretly modelled on a young Judi Dench), and couldn't let go of the story. Nine drafts later ... More about my crime writing and books at www.sherrylclarkcrimewriter.com I have been writing poems and stories for over twenty-five years, and have two collections of poetry published. Perseverance really does count, I think, for all kinds of writing. In 1996 I wrote my first children’s book, "The Too-Tight Tutu", which was published in 1997 by Penguin Australia. I have since written over 60 children's and YA books, which are published around the world. My verse novel "Farm Kid" won the 2005 NSW Premier’s Literary Award for Children’s Books. "Sixth Grade Style Queen (Not!)" was a 2008 CBCA Honour Book. My YA novel "Dying to Tell Me", published in the USA by KaneMiller, has also been published in Australia by me. I'm a teacher in creative writing at Victoria University TAFE. My author website is at www.sherrylclark.com. I also work as a freelance editor, manuscript development editor and mentor - information on these at www.sherrylclarkwritingcoach.com. And yes, I also teach people how to develop their own blogs and websites!
