Matchy Matchy

by Erin McGill

Overview

Maria always matches, but Maria doesn’t want to be so matchy matchy. One day she mixes it up in this colorful and quirky picture book

Thanks to Mom, everything about Maria matches—her clothes, her socks, her underwear, her backpack, and her lunchbox. Maria even matches the dog, the duvet, and the doilies. But Maria doesn’t want to be so matchy matchy. She wants to mix it up! Feathers and fringe! Pom-poms and plaid! Spikes and spots! Leopard and lace! Tie-dye and tutus! One day she does just that and asserts her very own unique style

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781944903725
Publisher:	Cameron Kids
Publication date:	10/15/2019
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 10.50(h) x 0.65(d)
Age Range:	5 - 7 Years

About the Author

Erin McGill earned a BFA from Pratt Institute, where she discovered her love of patterns, textiles, and collage, just like Maria. She lives in New York City.

Editorial Reviews

10/01/2019

PreS-Gr 1—Maria's mom loves everything to match, but Maria longs to mix things up. The living room is a study in chintz. The bathroom is coated with sunflowers, even down to the kitschy toilet paper. Worst of all, Maria matches. On her way to school, her rainbow-themed barrettes match her dress, lunch box, and backpack. Heading to the pool, her whale-themed flippers match her arm floats. Her fluffy white dog even wears coordinating bandannas and bows! Maria finally hits her breaking point and stages a protest (including a manifesto). Seeking to convince her mom that clothes don't always need to match, Maria creates a wonderful collage showcasing the brilliant variety of styles, silhouettes, colors, and textures found in apparel. Putting on a fashion show featuring everything from a feathered-hat to a vintage crocheted cape, Maria soon has her mother abandoning themes and embracing unexpected combinations. Maria has a big, funny personality that pops off the page. The illustrations cleverly integrate textile patterns into line drawings, adding lovely texture and depth. The text avoids tropes indicating that interest in fashion is somehow girly or frivolous, instead celebrating fashion, fabrics, and patterns as wonderfully creative and visionary. VERDICT Young fashion-lovers will love this jaunty quest for sartorial independence.—Alyssa Annico, Youngstown State University, OH

School Library Journal

2019-08-26
Maria's clothes always match the occasion as well as her accessories, but she's about to "lose [her] matchy-matchy mind."

The book's beautiful, flowery cover foreshadows the world Maria lives in. In the living room Maria's outfit blends in with the print of the comfy chair she's sitting in. At school her laces, lunchbox, backpack, and even the barrettes holding back her black hair match. One comical two-page spread shows Maria's flowery yellow underwear matching her dress. Maria's problem here, though, is not the outfits: It's her mom. "My mom picks out all of my clothes. She makes everyone…and everything match." Maria longs to mix it up, and in her fight for the right to self-expression, she rebels, conceals, debates, and marches. Finally, Mom concedes, even wearing her own unmatchy outfit: "Polka dots and petunias!" By the end of the book, Maria exults that "this is me. Marvelous, unmatching, mix-it-up me!" McGill's humorous illustrations mix patterns, textiles, and collage to great effect. Readers might want to pair this book with Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match/Marisol McDonald no combina, by Monica Brown and illustrated by Sara Palacios (2011), for a look at another child who rejoices in her individuality. Maria and her mother have black hair and olive skin; her school friends have a variety of skin and hair colors.

As Maria shows, some things are worth fighting for. (Picture book. 5-7)

Kirkus Reviews