Too Purpley!

by Jean Reidy, Geneviève Leloup (Illustrator)

Too purpley, too tickly, too puckery, too prickly!

What's a toddler to do with a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear? Try on everything, of course! Playful rhyming text and textile-driven art leap off the page in this board book edition, tailor-made for little hands.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Storytime, Humor, Fiction, Emotion, Contemporary

26 pages, Board Book

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Jean Reidy’s bestselling and award-winning picture books have earned their spots as favorites among readers and listeners of all ages and from all over the world. She is honored to be a three-time winner of the Colorado Book Award, a Parent’s Choice Gold Award Winner, a Charlotte Zolotow Honor winner and recognized on “Best of” lists by School Library Journal, the New York Times, NPR and Amazon. Jean writes from her home in Chicago where she lives just a short walk from her neighborhood library … which she visits nearly every day.

Reviews

[Lindsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a little girl who tries on a lot of different clothes, but doesn’t choose to wear any of them because they were “too” something. Too purpley, too scratchy, too zippery, etc. Until, finally, she finds the perfect clothes to wear. While this book doesn’t have a very engaging plot line to it, it’s still really fun to read the word that this little girl comes up with to describe the clothes. It’s also fun to look at the illustrations to see how the illustrator decided to depict that word. I would use this book to show children to describe the things around them. While a lot of the words are made up, it teaches children to experiment with words and sounds.

[Matthew · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cute approach to listing and displaying various patterns, shapes, colors, textures but disappointing for a three-year-old girl who absolutely loves the color purple.

[Baby Goode · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book. Cute illustrations, rhyming, and practice with adjectives!

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little girl has trouble deciding what she wants to wear. It seems she has every design and pattern one could wish for, but every one is "too something". One outfit is too stripey, one is too puckery, one is too polka-dotty, and so on - until she finds the just-right one.

This story will suit pre-readers and early readers as it is in rhyme with vivid large illustrations.

[Mama Bibliosoph · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story begins with the girl yelling, "NOT THESE CLOTHES!" as her mother presents a towering array of options. She (along with her fashionable pet turtle) tries on outfit after outfit announcing her complaints with each possibility. Some of the problems are aesthetic (like "TOO PURPLEY"), while others are sensory (such as "TOO ITCHY"). Every complaint provides kids with well illustrated examples of useful adjectives for describing clothes.

Children who can't tolerate tags in their clothes will find a kindred spirit when the girl complains that an outfit with a half-dozen or so tags is "TOO TAGGY."

Board books in the getting-dressed genre don't tend to show sensory issues like this. It's nice to see a more relatable character.
---
I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is part of a longer post on books about clothing and dressing: https://www.lineupthebooks.com/dressing/

[Diana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing really...wrong with this one, but it's a bad combination of an overly simplistic story combined with words the littlest ones don't really understand. The pictures are fun (I like the turtle!), but there's not any story to speak of, and the ending just comes out of nowhere. I would have given it an extra star if the ending had been introduced at all. As it is, the book just...stops. Not good. The kiddos didn't like it, either.

[Isha Barrie]

This book will definitely have children not only learn about colors, but also patterns and textures. Too purply will also have you little one get excited about dressing themselves in fun colors.

[Dee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too simple! Too Purpley I thought might be more of a color book, but it was not. It really wasn't that graet of a book for my toddler. The words were really simple to read, but it is hard to show "to prickley" and discribe that to her. Maybe a good book for beginer readers?

[Roben · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure anything can be Too Purpley... but our young protagonist would be quick to disagree. I'm a firm believer that kids should be allowed to wear the clothes that they love and that they find comfortable. This book reinforces that concept.

[Cymiki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Makes for some nice vocabulary words!

[TIA BUONAVOLONTA · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a very low level read. Definitely for a child who is just learning words and how to spell. The whole book what just adjectives describing the clothes the character did not want to wear. Such as “Too purpley, too puckery, too prickly, and too scratchy.” It wasn’t the greatest book because there was no story too it, but to teach a child different adjectives or smaller beginner words to read it is a great choice. However, I’m not sure if all of the adjectives were even real words like “polka-dotty”. The pictures were great, and the character ended up finding something to wear that was just right for her, so it was an okay read in my opinion.

[Presley Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too Purply! by Jean Reidy is a fun and colorful picture book about a little girl trying to find the perfect outfit to wear. As she tries on different clothes, she discovers that each one is “too purple,” “too polka-dotty,” or “too fancy.” Through her playful search, she learns about self-expression and what makes her feel comfortable and confident.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fabulous illustrations were the best part! The text is ultra simple (too purpley, too stitchy, too itchy, too fancy, etc.) and there's no real story line, but with the right group of kids this could be a fun read aloud. Spoiler alert: it has nothing to do with colors!

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

A picky kid tries on many outfits, all of which she finds something wrong with. I have to agree with this kid on the outfit with stripes at least--that page hurts my eyes! This could be used to teach children about patterns and colors.

[Michelle Farella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for teaching about patterns

[Sadia Mansoor · Rating 3 out of 5]

TOOOOOO many adjectives to learn here :)
Read it here.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7puv...

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for Getting Dressed themed Virtual Storytime 6/3/2020

[Maeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young girl rejects clothes based on their pattern or texture until she finds the perfect combination.

A good introduction to colors, patterns, and textures.

Storytime:
Clothing
Patterns

[Gabs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun book

[Melissa Swistek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe this would have been enjoyed by an older toddler? It seems more like a book for parents.

[Ryann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good book about too much stuff.

[J.]

J read three times may 2020

[J.]

J read three times may 2020 and once June 2020 and once July 2020

[Kristen Rusnak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rediy, J. (2010). Too purpley. New York, NY: Bloomsbury.

This adorable pre-school level book is a favorite with my son and daughter. The simple phrases, word repetition and rhyming make it a good choice for preschool and read alouds. The story revolves around a little girl and the many outfits she tries on before finding one that is "So comfy, just right."

This book would be good to use in preschool classrooms to teach about rhyming, getting dressed, independence and individuality. It could also be used to teach about colors, textures, and patterns. Teachers could have students talk about their favorite outfit and why it is their favorite.

Primary


From Follett Titlewave: Reviews & Awards

Booklist 01/15/10

Publishers Weekly 01/11/10

Horn Book 10/01/10

School Library Journal 01/01/10

Kirkus Reviews 01/01/10

Wilson's Children 10/01/10

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 - This was rather...... annoying. It was annoying as hell actually. The text consists of "too purpley, too tickly, too puckery, too prickly, too stitchy, too itchy", etc. You get the picture right?
The little girl is wearing at least one different outfit on each page with each one being "too" something (see above for examples).
The only time I could ever see actually reading this would be to a very young baby. As in, for reading time just to read, to a baby who doesn't know words yet. You know, back when they're young enough that any words are good.
Julia is five years old and she looked at me like I was nuts while we read this. Luckily it was over in about 10.5 seconds. the colorful illustrations were the best part.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple, silly, light-hearted, cute, and funny. With a bit of truth for me, too. There are a few levels at which I connect to this book--each one absolutely hilarious to me. I especially connect with the last page. I smile at the appropriateness and nail-on-the-head that some of it is. But the absolute best part is as my co-worker put it: "Bob makes a guest appearance."

8/10/10 I thought I would try this in a toddler time. It wasn't too bad. Some were involved.

8/12/10 This worked much better. I had mothers/care-givers who were much more involved with their children and interacting with me. And this time I had the idea to have them look for the turtle.

[Anthony Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too Purpley is a picture book about a young girl who is very picky about what she wants to wear. The inspiration the author got for the book was from her own life. She prefers to wear certain colors and certain clothes. One reason the book is good for young children because it offers a wide range of bright colors. Some pages stand out more than others which could catch the eyes of young children. On the other hand, this book also plays a sort of gender stereotype. The young girl in the story is extremely picky about what to wear and could impact a young girl. Overall the book filled with bright vibrant colors and I see no harm in children reading it.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Too Purpley is a cute children’s book. Too Purpley is about a girl who doesn’t like what her mother picks out for her to wear. Finally she finds the perfect outfit. I’m sure a lot of parents and children can identify with this book. I know that when I was a kid, I was horribly picky about what I wanted to wear. I wouldn’t wear dresses or anything frilly. The illustrations are adorable. I like the turtle. It wears everything that the girl wears. The turtle also helps her when her clothes are uncomfortable. I’m excited to read the next book in the series, Too Princessy. I recommend this book for girls three and older.

[Dodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Too fun! A fussy pig-tailed little girl is just not happy with anything in her closet. As she works her way through the options, she keeps exclaiming her protests - "Too itchy, too scratchy, too stichy, too matchy!" - until the perfect outfit is found. A good read for that day you need to get a crabby kid to giggle and break a stubborn streak. LeLoup's illustrations are hysterically eye-popping and the little girl's facial expressions are priceless.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was awesome & it got rave reviews at my Toddler Time. A must read! A little girl tries on a ton of clothing, giving reasons for why she doesn't like every outfit. Then she finds the one which is not girly or tom-boyish...but somewhere in the middle, an outfit that is "so comfy! Just Right." I like the wording that the author chose. Clothing is supposed to be comfortable. I don't care about fashion, I want comfy! Very relatable to two year olds through adulthood.