The "shoes" [in "Skating Shoes," the American title of "White Boots"] are those of young professional skaters. Lalla, the rich little orphan, meets Harriet, at a rink. Their friendship changes both their lives…. The outcome for both girls, in regard to their skating, as well as their characters, is very clever.

English family home life, with Harriet's amusing family living over their strange shop, is well pictured, and girls will like the three very different brothers. Lalla's aunt, with her snobbism and ambition, may be overdrawn, but someone like her must be behind every child star.

Miss Streatfeild writes so well that we welcome, for girls of about eleven to thirteen, whatever "shoes" she takes up. Her books are full of interesting characters, both young and old, of both quiet bits and emotional bits, which all add up to life in the round.

The talk here about professional...