Max

Max is very simply about a boy who tries ballet and ends up enjoying it. At first, I felt a bit of a let down when he didn't face any adversity for liking ballet, but I immediately asked myself why I was expecting it. People shouldn't have to defend themselves or others for liking what they like.

Max plays baseball every Saturday. One day, while dropping off his little sister at dancing, Max decides to pass the time by watching her class. While watching, Max decides to do some stretched with the girls, which prompts the teacher to invite him to join the class. He stretches at the barre, tries to do a split, and leaps across the floor. Max is having so much fun, that when it is time for him to leave, he leaps out of the door and all the way to the park. When it is his turn to bat, he keeps striking out but then he finally hits. The hit is a home run, and Max soon discovers he has found a new way to warm up for his game on Saturdays, his sister's dance class. Max didn't let a girl sport like ballet get in his way of stretching. He show more made it something that he could be a part of also. I like the fact that the illustrations show the girls smiling at Max while he is dancing. They aren’t making fun of him or laughing at him, so when students read this, they will not feel like someone is going to judge them. A great book to encourage students to work together and go against the gender stereotypes. show less

Max is a great baseball player! Everyday on his way to practice he drops his sister off at ballet. One day running early the teacher invited him to join them for their warm ups. Initially, Max struggled but eventually learned how to do the splits. His new found flexibility made him an even better ball player. Even though ballet is widely recognized as a girls activity Max did not allow that to stop him.

I enjoyed this book for several reasons. First of all, I thought the message of the story pushed readers to broaden their perspectives and previous beliefs. More specifically, the story seemed to break gender stereotypes. For example, when Max went to dance class before his baseball practice, he tried the leaps and turns that the girls were practicing and enjoyed them. In addition, I liked the illustrations of Max and the girls at dance practice because they enhanced the story. For example, when Max and the girls did their leaps, the illustrations showed them high in the air in exaggerated positions that portrayed Max’s lighthearted mood throughout the dance practice. The main idea of this book is that boys and girls may like show more different things despite what people think they should like. show less

Guess who read a book on the first day of 2018? This girl. What a lovely way to ring in the New Year. c:

Max is a lovely little picture book about a young boy, Max, who ends up spending time in his sister's dance class and really, really enjoying himself. I liked it! I thought it did challenge gender roles but I wish there had been more substance to it.

The black and white illustrations were beautiful and detailed, though, and I think the overall message or discussion you could have with a child in your life would be valuable.

I really enjoyed the book "Max" because of how different it is. "Max" takes away gender roles when the young boy participates in a ballet class and enjoyed it. It shows kids that you do not have to participate in typical "boy" or "girl" activities. It shows diversity in a different way and I really enjoy this perspective for student. I definitely recommend.

Max is a great baseball player and his sister is a dancer. Every Saturday they walk together and she goes to dance and he goes to his game. One Saturday his sister invites him into her dance class because he has a lot of time to kill before his game. At first he is reluctant but once the class starts, he joins in, and finds that is actually pretty fun and not so easy. I really like that this not only shows the character Max having an open mind but his sister and his sisters dance teacher. His sister invites him to class and the teacher invites him to join in whereas sometimes you see people just assuming a boy and a sports player would never be interested in dance. This was a good story but I feel like it would have been better if the show more author has built on it a little more. As is, it is kind of simple so it makes it less memorable and meaningful to me as a reader. show less