Tottie and Dot (Tania McCartney, illus by Tina Snerling, EK Books)

Two girls live side by side, in similar houses that look rather French. They live in relative peace and do the same things every day. Then, one day, their neighbourly rivalry explodes and life becomes much more complicated. Tottie and Dot start painting, converting, renovating and adding outrageous features to their houses, each one trying to outdo the other. They begin to look more and more frazzled—nothing like the clean and neatly dressed girls on the first pages. Finally, Tottie and Dot realise they must call a halt to all this activity. They bury their rivalry and sit drinking tea side by side again in front of an awning they’ve built to link their two houses. The simple text in Tottie and Dot highlights the futility of ‘keeping up with the Joneses’, and that it is simpler and easier to live in harmony with your neighbours. The chaos that results from the girls’ rivalry is charmingly portrayed through the book’s illustrations, which become busier and busier as the story progresses. This book is recommended for children aged four to seven years who are developing the confidence to be themselves and not copy their friends.

Margaret Hamilton is a former children’s book publisher. She now runs Pinerolo, the Children’s Book Cottage in Blackheath

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews