Customer Reviews

Let's Dance!: Learn to Swing, Foxtrot, Rumba, Tango, Line Dance, Lambada, Cha-Cha, Waltz, Two-Step, Jitterbug and Salsa with Style,

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

BEWARE: This book describes the International Style of ballroom dance. NOT the American style. Perhaps 10% of American dance students are learning International.

EXAMPLE: THE WALTZ

American Waltz:
The basic figure is a square in which the man starts by stepping forward with the left foot and the dancers return to the starting position in 6 beats, making a square.

International Waltz:
The basic figure is a zig-zag. The man starts with the RIGHT foot and the dancers travel around the dance floor in a zig-zag pattern.

It would be great if Paul Bottomer would write a similar beautiful book for American ballroom dancers.

Dave Palmer

Many of the dances taught in this book are international style. If you plan to dance in the USA, you should know that social dancing is mainly American style for beginners.

The book is richly illustrated with photos. However, the angle of the photos changes randomly. So if you see a dance couple facing different directions in consecutive photos, maybe they have turned, or maybe the photographer moved. You have to read the accompanying text to tell.

I think this book is a good complement for beginning to advance-beginnning international dancers. You cannot completely rely on the book to learn techniques because while it does touches on them somewhat, it mostly concentrates on dance patterns. It will give you a rough idea of what a particular step looks like and give you the name of the step. If you have learned the step before, this would serve as a good review.

It's a good reference book if you know how to dance. If you're a beginner and try to learn from this book, you're in deep trouble. Unless you can translate "move you left foot to left, reflex your right knee, shift your weight on to the left on beat 3" description into movement right away, you'll go through one basic movement in hours. If you want to improve your dance skill, it may be helpful. Since I'm a total beginner, I can't say that for sure.

This book outlines most of the ballroom dances from a pictorial point of view with the assistance of footstep illustrations. Its virtue is it is pretty comprehensive, with most of the ballroom dances discussed. Even some dances considered a little risque, such as the lambada, are discussed in the book. No doubt that professional instructors will find areas of disagreement in the advice and the patterns developed, but no book can cover all the idiosyncrasies of styling that exist in ballroom classes. A good book to have when learning ballroom, and the price is very reasonable.

Disappointed

It looked like a very easy reading book, and it turned out to be a very confusing bunch of steps and pictures. And by the way, I have asked my swing instructor about the steps and he had found some mistakes.

I have practiced for several months and then I went to dance, just to find out that most of the info I have read it was all wrong. Especially the tango steps. Sorry for this comment but that is what happened to me.

Let's Dance is a fairly comprehensive step by step instruction book best for those with some dance lesson experience. Although the footwork diagrams are a little confusing, the narrative and the pictures help to bring it together. The book itself is well designed in the coffee-table style with excellent photography.

Another reviewer mentioned that swing is not mentioned anywhere in the book. Swing is actually part of the chapter on jive and I found it very helpful.

The book title is incorrect, it should not include swing. There were no place in the book that teaches you how to swing

I'd hit a latin balroom brick wall until my good friend and dancing partner Mrs Bedwyr Elias Williams, North Wales's premier Rumba and social Foxtrot supremo, directed me toward Mr Bottomer's holy bible of South American dance. It's certainly taught me a trick or two and now I'm the talk of the Llyr 'Ger Ole' Emlyn, Memorial, Latino Dancing Club; Betws-yn-Rhos. where myself and Mrs Williams can now really let ourselves go and cut some rug. Thank you Mr Bottomer.

THIS BOOK ADVERTISED 1300 FULL COLOR ILLUSTRATIONS AND DIAGRAMS. FOOT PATTERNS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN TEACHING SOMEONE TO DANCE THIS BOOK HAS ONLY ABOUT ONE DOZEN (12) DIAGRAMS AND IS MISLEADING. IF YOU LIKE TO LOOK AT PHOTOS OF DANCERS IT IS GREAT BUT TO MUCH READING AND WAY TO CONFUSING FOR A DANCER SUCH AS MYSELF WHO HAS HAD ABOUT 40 HOURS OF LESSONS. I FEEL THIS BOOK IS FOR AN ADVANCED DANCER ONLY. TOM BEHNEY