Review by Booklist Review
Dotty and Other Dotty, two pink mittens, keep the Little Girl's hands warm. Stripes, a blue/gray mitten, hasn't been worn since Other Stripes got lost, and sometimes Dotty and Other Dotty say hurtful things to her. After Other Dotty is lost, Stripes and Dotty begin working together, but suddenly, Other Stripes turns up! As Stripes begins to tell Dotty that Other Stripes will take her place, the Little Girl asks, "Why do you have to match?" Trembling, Dotty replies that she doesn't know, "But here's what I do know. Someone always gets left out." Thoughtfully, the Little Girl opens her cardboard box full of unmatched mittens ("We're free!") and starts wearing different combinations, each one is overjoyed to be appreciated just for being itself. Bailey's writing flows beautifully, breathing life into the quirky characters by giving them human attributes that are familiar, yet absurd. The narrative's ability to evoke empathy is equaled by its wit. Kids touched by Stripe's and Dotty's hurt feelings will soon find themselves laughing at the absurdity of having human foibles so successfully overcome by mittens. Created using acrylics and watercolor pencils, Shaloshvili's illustrations capture the story's broad emotional range. A funny, yet thought-provoking picture book that is highly recommended for reading aloud.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K--A fabulous story built on the premise that all hell will not break loose if things do not match. Two pink-spotted mittens, Dotty and Other Dotty, cling together like the smug pair they are, excluding Stripes, another mitten who has lost her partner. Being the third mitten buried in a pocket is not much of a life, but then Other Dotty disappears, as mittens do, and the little girl owner decides that wearing mismatched mittens Dotty and Stripes suits her just fine. In fact, Dotty and Stripes get along beautifully--until Other Stripes returns after missing for two months under the couch. At first, the two striped mittens reunite. But the little girl leans into mismatching and pulls out all the other single mittens she's been hoarding. Can the sock drawer revolution be far behind? It's hard to believe how many lessons Bailey and Shaloshvili knit into this bountiful book on friendship, inclusion, rebellion, and questioning the status quo, in fairly spare text and in illustrations that have the texture, colors, and fuzzy look of a mohair sweater. The mittens (and socks and shoes) have googly eyes and sweet faces, and when humans start to show up, they are as diverse as the mittens and in almost as many colors, plus one uses a wheelchair. What a glorious metaphor. VERDICT Preschoolers will love being in on the joke, but elementary-aged readers will love this, too. It's fast, funny, and true.--Kimberly Olson Fakih
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Dotty and Other Dotty are a perfect match. The pair of yellow-spotted, pink, woolly mittens flaunt their partnership in front of lonesome single mitten Stripes. Drab and gray in both affect and appearance, Stripes has been relegated to her human's pocket ever since Other Stripes went missing. Rather than empathize with the lonesome mitten, Dotty and Other Dotty lord their assumed superiority over Stripes. "What's the use of a single mitten?" they sneer, sending Stripes into a mitt-sized existential crisis. But when Other Dotty is left behind in the snow and Stripes's long-lost partner is found, the mittens are forced to confront their behavior and their biases. Bailey's story of inclusion and acceptance balances any didacticism with a playful tone. "This is just weird," declares Dotty when paired with Stripes, and the illustration shows that visual clash. Rendered in acrylics and watercolor pencils, Shaloshvili's illustrations are soft and sweet, with colors befitting a gray winter's day and a child's cold, rosy cheeks. Justice is restored when our mitten-wearing (and losing) kid decides to mix and match her collection -- giving all her fuzzy friends an equal chance. Hill SaxtonNovember/December 2023 p.53 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Who says things must match? Dotty and Other Dotty are a pair of pink mittens with yellow polka dots. Stripes is a gray-striped mitten, sans mate. The pair tease her for being a purposeless singleton and point out that the Little Girl who owns them will never wear her. Then Other Dotty gets lost, and the Little Girl pairs Dotty with Stripes. They almost become friends; that they're mismatched is unimportant. But then who should materialize but Other Stripes, leaving Dotty solo. This trio is confronted by the "very BIG voice" of the Little Girl, who asks why they must match. After much consideration, Dotty and the striped pair confess they don't know, and, they concede, "someone always gets left out"; the Little Girl heartily concurs. Out comes her box of mittens that lost their partners long ago. Subsequently, she decides deliberately to wear mismatched mittens daily and even starts a trend at school. The mittens love it, making new friends along the way. The overarching themes of this witty, thought-provoking story are, of course, accepting differences and recognizing individual worthiness. Mittens are a sensible thematic metaphor, suggesting cozy warmth. The illustrations, created with acrylic and watercolor pencil, depict a diverse group of background children; the Little Girl is light-skinned. A sound, creatively told lesson in inclusion. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
