The Dress and the Girl

Around the turn of the last century, a Greek village girl wears her beloved red dress as she goes about her daily life only to be separated from it when the family emigrates.

The child and her dress lead a seemingly idyllic, nature-filled life under blue skies, among whitewashed buildings, but they long for adventure. For unexplained reasons, the family boards a ship, where girl and dress play and go to school as before, details that subtly convey the length of the passage. Upon arrival at Ellis Island, the family is separated from the trunk in which the dress is now packed. The trunk, unclaimed, circles the globe in search of its rightful owners, eventually landing in a secondhand shop. Now grown, the girl spots her dress in the window show more and buys it for her own daughter. Morstad’s (House of Dreams, 2018, etc.) clean illustrations expertly evoke the era through a nostalgic color palette and the (unnamed) locations through carefully chosen details. The opening and closing spreads echo each other, reinforcing the theme of connection. Immigrant stories are perennially relevant, and the rarely seen 20th-century Greek setting is refreshing. However, the dress—while attributed human feelings—never generates enough emotion to create dramatic tension, and readers are not shown the impact on the family of starting a new life without most of their worldly possessions.

A gentle tale well-suited for family-history and creative-writing units. (Picture book. 4-8) show less

A young girl does everything in her favorite dress, from attending school to watching the stars, eventually emigrating in it from her Greek island home to the United States. Here she and the dress are parted, until the day, many years later, that the girl - now a grown woman with her own little girl - sees this beloved garment from her past hanging in a vintage clothing store window...

Although author Camille Andros' story idea in The Dress and the Girl is engaging enough, what really stood out here, for me, was illustrator Julie Morstad's gorgeous artwork. This latter was, in fact, what had me hunting down this book in the first place, and I was not disappointed! The visuals here are stunning, from the girl gazing up at the night sky to show more her wonderstruck face, looking in the clothing store window. I'm not sure what medium Morstad used - it looks like collage - but her illustrations are well-suited to the theme, and beautifully capture and build upon the emotional undercurrents of the story. Recommended to Morstad fans (of course), and to picture-book readers seeking stories about treasured items from childhood. show less

This is a lovely story about sentimental items and the thought and value that we place on them and the memories that we attach to them. It's the story of a little girl and her favorite dress - a dress that her mother made for her. The girl does everything in the dress day after day - jumping rope, sailing and playing in their home in what appears to be a Greek island. Then, one day, the family has to pack up all of their belongings and they sail to America to make a new life for themselves. The trunk in which the girl packed the dress gets lost in the journey. The emotions and longing of being apart are transposed onto the dress and the dress looks everywhere for her girl. One day, after many many years, the little girl, now a mother of show more a little girl herself, sees the dress hanging in a store window and the two are reunited at long last. It reminds me of a special item I had from my childhood, in which most readers can relate. This book can be used to console children being weaned off of a security item or assist in the feeling of loss when a much loved item goes missing. A very simple book with lovely pictures. show less

Great for grades k-3. About a young girl who immigrated to the United States with her dress, but go separated from the dress. The story guides us through both the journies of the girl and the dress until they find each other. Talks about the power of memories and items, as well as unexpected journies. Good for talking about repetition in writing or messages from books. Also good if students relate.

Heart warming story about a girl and dress who are reunited after many years. While immigrating to the U.S, the girl lost her dress that reminded her so much of the things she did in Greece. Years go on and she finally finds the dress which she gives to her daughter. Sometimes materialistic things trigger memories, for children it might be a toy, stuffed animal, or blanket.

This book is about a young girl who immigrated from her country to the United States. Before her family decided to immigrate to the US, the girl's mother made her a dress. The dress and the girl were one she did everything in that dress. After a long voyage to the US, her dress was lost. The girl grew up and had a daughter. For years the dress was still searching for her, and one day walking down the street, the girl (woman) and her daughter spot the dress at a store. She buys the dress and hands it down to her daughter. It is truly a beautiful story and how a dress has so much significance for this woman. It reminds her of home.

This book would be good for both primary and intermediate students. This book is about a girl who immigrated to the U.S. from the Greek islands. This book takes us through the journey of the dress and the girl through the ups and the downs. In the classroom this book would be good to talk about immigration with your students.