Ella Bella Ballerina and the Nutcracker — James Mayhew

Christmas is coming, and Madame Rosa has prepared a surprise party for her ballet class. "Ella Bella, would you fetch the music box?" asks Madame Rosa. "Then we can have some dancing at our party." As the music begins playing, little Ella Bella is magically transported into the enchanting, festive world of The Nutcracker ballet. There, she meets the beautiful Clara and her wooden Nutcracker doll. Together, Ella and Clara must fight off the evil Mouse King so they can break the evil spell that has transformed a handsome prince into the Nutcracker doll. When the spell is broken and the prince comes to life, he leads Clara and Ella to a magic forest where they dance to the music of the famous Nutcracker ballet. On the last page of this beautifully illustrated story, young readers learn about the origins of The Nutcracker ballet, its music written in 1892 by the composer Piotr Tchaikovsky for Russia's famous Imperial Ballet.