Yehudit, known to nearly all as Ditty, is a daughter in an ultra-orthodox Jewish family in this Australian novel by Robyn Bavati. Until she is twelve she is the ideal daughter, but when her friend Sarah finds that her mother has a secret vice, a tv set in a cupboard in her bedroom, and they see the Nutcracker ballet, she is torn in two. She wants to be the dutiful daughter she has been, but she needs to dance.  When she tries dancing, the dutiful pull is too gentle, the pull of the dance too strong, and she creates a web of deception to be able to continue. And because her passion and natural ability are so great, and she practises at every opportunity, she becomes very good, very quickly, and has an opportunity to audition for the Australian National Ballet. It’s a beautifully written story, with a real feel of both the Jewish world and the ballet world, and utterly believable characters.  A most impressive first novel. Because Ditty ages from twleve to eighteen in the story it’s really a teenage read, but there’s nothing to stop a younger reader enjoying this too.