Noel Streatfield wrote 58 books for children, and she was born on Christmas Eve, 1895. (Now I suppose I know where the name “Noel” came from.) The “shoes” books are Ms. Streatfield’s most famous: Ballet Shoes, Theatre Shoes, Tennis Shoes, Dancing Shoes, Circus Shoes, Movie Shoes, New Shoes,, and Party Shoes, maybe more. Some of the books were apparently re-named for the American market and to take advantage of the popularity of Ballet Shoes. Ballet Shoes I can recommend without reservation. It’s a lovely story of three sisters, Pauline, Petrova, and Posy Fossil, who are determined to do something to make their surname famous. Each girl must find her own talent and her own way to uphold the Fossil name while coping with near-poverty and a very strict ballet school.