Welcome to Litsy!

I can understand a child finding houndstooth not colourful enough for a special dress, dotted swiss too plain, pinstripes too glum and printed toile too busy, but Pepper also rejects herringbone because it‘s too cold underwater, tartan because bagpipes are too loud, and ikat because it comes from a Malay-Indonesian word for knot and her hair yesterday “was so knotty it took four hours to sort it all out.” Isn‘t she fussy!

A sweet #picturebook with graphite and oils artwork that evokes a bygone era and timeless textile patterns in nostalgic shades of blue and brown. It‘s charming, but I‘m surprised that the jurors chose it over either of the honour books, which I will link to in the comments. http://www.ibby-canada.org/a-pattern-for-pepper-written-and-illustrated-by-julie... #canadianauthor

Pepper is a small girl who knows exactly what she does & doesn‘t like. When the tailor suggests each possible textile for her new dress, he elaborates, ie: “The word seersucker comes from the Persian shir o shakkar, which means ‘milk & sugar,‘ because of its smooth & bumpy textures.”
Pepper answers: “I like my tea strong, without milk & sugar. No thank you.”
(Unusual child to drink her tea this way, never mind dismiss a fabric for that reason.)

What a unique idea--a children's storybook that explains fabric patterns and their backgrounds and meanings to kids! The illustrations are whimsical and fun, and this was a really good introduction to something creative and fun that my son won't get to do in person (designing his own special outfit). His attention usually wavers at some point while reading, but he was glued to this one. #picturebooklove #17booklove #netgalley

I can say that this is truly a unique book. Pepper needs a new dress for a very special occasion. Mom takes her to a tailor who explains what various patterns, like houndstooth and argyle, mean and look like. Now it is up for Pepper to pick out the one that will be perfect. I like this book. Having a dress custom made is out of the reach of most kids, but I like the way they have of explaining patterns. A fun read, and one of a kind.