ALA Booklist (Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 1996)

In this picture book for older readers, Ninny summons Bessie to dance in the moonlight near grandfather Oppa's grave because anyplace that Oppa sleeps is a good place. The children grow to adulthood and marry, and Ninny is sent to war. After the Normandy invasion, Bessie waits for word of Ninny. He returns safely, and the two grow old together, dancing, until Bessie's final words: Any place my Ninny sleeps is a good place. Deedy lovingly lulls readers into the intimacy of the reminiscence, using Bessie's voice to tell what is essentially a family story. Santini's watercolors, sometimes vague, mostly dreamy, enhance the feeling of events recalled through time. Her gravestones look like plump old folks, hands on hips, standing in rosy moonlight. Use this with older readers as a fine example of what family history can be. It's like a full cloth made from the remnants of people's lives, with all the humor, pathos, and drama that's necessary for a very effective, personal sort of storytelling. (Reviewed January 1 & 15, 1996)

Horn Book (Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 1995)

From childhood through old age, Bessie and her husband Ninny have expressed their love for each other by dancing. A string of vignettes describes their youth, their marriage, their children, their separation during World War II, an anniversary party, and Ninny's death. The meandering, self-conscious tale will not hold youngsters' interest; the buoyant illustrations provide some charm.

Kirkus Reviews

A complex, pretty story—about dancing and death—whose text and illustrations are stitched together from different fragments; poetic snatches of narrative are woven together like a series of dreams. Bessie remembers Ninny: As children, he threw buttons at her window and they would go dance on his grandfather's grave; he went off to war and returns; they have children and grow old. Now alone, Bessie dances on Ninny's grave. Deedy (The Library Dragon, 1994, etc.) pens a text that is sometimes sentimental, occasionally hard to follow, but has many resonant moments; Ninny, only glimpsed, comes across as a profound and charismatic figure. In pale, semitransparent watercolors, everything swirls and flows, as if caught in the middle of a dance; images overlap and collapse years into one spread, e.g., Bessie and Ninny dancing as children, then as young adults, and finally, at their wedding. Some of the pictures and text are imaginatively framed in swatches of fabric, stitched around the edges, and scattered with buttons. Children may have difficulty with the calligraphic typeface, making this a book more appropriate for sharing than solos. (Picture book. 8-12)"

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Despite the precious life lessons knit into the story line (``Every human being has a right to three things: to dance... to sing... to tell stories''), Deedy's fluid prose and flair for imagery (""""the moon sat full-bellied on the treetops"""") turns a potentially trite story into a sweet, sentimental one. Childhood sweethearts Ninny and Bessie make a pact that when one of them dies, the other will come to the graveyard and dance on the grave. The story spans a lifetime, from the young couple's early moonlight dances at Ninny's grandfather's grave through marriage, a war and a last anniversary. In the end, Bessie fulfills her promise and saves the last dance for her beloved Ninny. Santini's impressionistic watercolors, rendered in muted shades of rose, smoke blue, and browns, effectively capture the bittersweet mood of the story. A note: although the subject may be more likely to appeal to beginning readers, the text-set in a decorative scriptface-is a visual stumbling block. Ages 8-12. (Oct.)

School Library Journal

Gr 2-6--Two children promise that if one dies, the other will dance on the departed's grave. In prose laden with imagery, Bessie tells of her friendship with the tailor's son, Ninny, who summons her to join him on nighttime graveyard forays by pelting her window with buttons. Their friendship turns into a long, loving marriage through World War II and beyond. On their anniversary, the elderly couple dance and recall their childhood vow. The final page depicts Bessie dancing barefoot near her beloved's grave. Throughout, readers are reminded that life goes on, and that deceased loved ones are kept alive via memories and stories. Santini's flowing pastel watercolors are cluttered with buttons and blanket-stitched, parchmentlike backgrounds. While the fluid art suits the storyteller's lilting voice, the illustrator nearly overwhelms the pages with ghostly penciled images, movement, and distracting decorations. Best shared in small groups or read individually, this tale has a somber mood underlying the joy and love. Alice Schertle's Maisie (Lothrop, 1995) follows a woman's life without reminding readers that death waits at the end of all life stories.--Susan Hepler, Alexandria City Public Schools, VA