Synopses & Reviews
When I was six, my father nicknamed me Laurisa Kesslova because, he said, all great dancers were Russians, and since I was going to be a great dancer, I needed a Russian name. I aim to reclaim that name.When Lauren Kessler was twelve, her ballet instructor crushed not just her dreams of being a ballerina but also her youthful self-assurance. Now, many decades and three children later, Kessler embarks on a journey to join a professional company to perform in The Nutcracker. Raising the Barre is more than just one woman's story; it is a story about shaking things up, taking risks and ignoring good sense, and forgetting how old you are and how you're "supposed" to act. It's about testing limits and raising the bar(re) on your own life.
Synopsis
An award-winning author's journey to turn off the comfortable cruise-control of midlife and reclaim the daring of her girlhood by dancing in the world's most popular ballet, The Nutcracker, with a professional company.
About the Author
Lauren Kessler is an award-winning author and immersion reporter. She is the author of seven nonfiction books, including
Counterclockwise: My Year of Hypnosis, Hormones, Dark Chocolate, and Other Adventures in the World of Anti-aging, as well as
My Teenage Werewolf: A Mother, a Daughter, a Journey Through the Thicket of Adolescence. Her journalism has appeared in the
New York Times Magazine,
Los Angeles Times Magazine,
O, the Oprah Magazine,
Ladies' Home Journal,
Woman's Day,
Prevention, and Salon. She also directs the graduate program in narrative journalism at the University of Oregon.
laurenkessler.com