Ella Sarah Gets Dressed

* Chodos-Irvine, Margaret. Ella Sarah Gets Dressed. New York: Hourcourt, Inc., 2003.

This fun, playful and beautifully illustrated book tells the story of Ella Sarah who knows exactly what she wants to wear, even if her family doesn't agree with her fashion choices. The printmaking techniques that leave narrow white gaps between blocks of colour, combined with the bold but slightly muted colours, create an effect reminiscent of early colour offset printing. The images rely on colour, shape and texture rather than line, and convey a great sense of emotion and exuberance.

How do the pictures tell the story?

The pictures very much the same story as the text, but in a different order. The text begins with the outfit itself - the pink polka-dot pants, dress with orange and green flowers, striped socks, yellow shoes and red hat - and repeats it as a chorus as the reader is lead through the alternate suggestions from family members, the disappointment, the strong-willed refusal, and finally the triumph and celebration of individuality. A reading of only the images tells the story in reverse, with the interactions first and the outfit itself as a punch-line or reveal near the end. When read out loud, the subtle difference between these ways of telling the story creates tension and a subtle kind of visual suspense that makes the joyousness of the closing images even more enjoyable. In the last few pages the text gets shorter and shorter while the illustrations become increasingly energetic and expressive, until there is no text at all and the pictures tell the entire story.

A Caldecott Honor Book.