Amiri And Odette: A Love Story

A boy searches for his newfound love among the city streets, to find that, unwarily, she's been caught in the arms of an evil street lord who means her harm. It is only through perseverance and undying love that the girl is returned to the safety of her one true love. Lyrical text and stunning mixed media artwork make for a powerful recasting of the classic ballet Swan Lake.

They danced like mist on water

As light as summer breeze.

He touched her waist; she kissed his cheek.

Her eyes began to tease.

Set among the asphalt of a housing project and the concrete of a basketball court, Walter Dean Myers' compelling work is delivered with rhythms that twist, hover, pounce, and inspire. For Amiri and Odette, love is hard when the streets are mean. Their dance for two becomes a fight for three, and their only chance is to hold fast to the power of being together as one. Part poem, part love story, part rap and rhapsody, AMIRI AND ODETTE: A DANCE FOR TWO celebrates hearts that beat forever. Accompanied by the collage-on-cinder-block paintings of Javaka Steptoe, this genre-breaking volume sets a new stage for a classic story.