Midnight in Everwood Review

Drawn in by the ballet connection, stayed for the deconstruction of gender in dance history.

The first quarter of Midnight in Everwood is perhaps a little slow. I liked it, but I was not amazed. Marietta is an upper-middle-class young woman who has been able to bargain freedom to be a ballet dancer as long as she retires to get married when she turns 21. Now age 20, the noose is tightening, especially with the arrival of the creepy Dr. Drosselmeier who has declared his interest in her. To escape him, Marietta hides in a clock which turns out to be a Narnia-like portal to the land of sweets, Everwood. Instead of waltzing snowflakes and flowers, however, this place is seemingly haunted by predators and a possessive king.

This book has everything I love about The Nutcracker ballet — pointe shoes, Christmas parties, extravagant outfits, anthropomorphized candy, everything making me hungry — and added extra layers on gender in this historical ballet world, adventure, and revolution. What starts as Marietta’s attempted escape from familial and societal expectations and arranged marriage becomes a larger enterprise when she connects with others in the strange sugary world she finds herself in and finds their differences to be surface-level.

I appreciate that Kuzniar is knowledgeable enough about ballet to understand the strain it puts on the body, especially the feet. Marietta has to visit a cobbler and collaborate on getting new pointe shoes because she wears her original ones out very quickly and this world has not been previously introduced to ballet. Marietta is also very physically strong as a result of her dancing — something I wish more people understood. Ballet only looks delicate. Her strength comes in handy when she has to fight off the evil king and his henchmen where she also has the advantage of surprise moves and flexibility.

Kuzniar has written another ballet retelling (another Tchaikovsky!) which is already on my list. I found out she writes middle-grade books which I want to check out now too. This was a lovely brumal read, perfect for winter and the holiday season.