KATE'S TURN

Kate's scholarship to ballet school in N.Y.C. seems like the culmination of all her hard work, the launching of dreams come true; but when the rigors of a dancer's life are made clear to her, she returns home to be (she hopes) a normal high-school student. Betancourt's tale bristles with the realistic details balletomanes adore—props, pressures, and pains—but it falters in the absence of a strong plot. At first, Kate appears to be serenely determined; while she's concerned about potential hardships, her resolve is unwavering. Later, that resolve simply dissipates without a dramatic turning point or much explanation. Ultimately, her role is that of an observer of a wonderful cast of ``real'' dancers. More a glimpse of ballet life than the story of one ballerina. (Fiction. 10+)