Clara chooses her very best dress to wear to the wedding, but it just doesn’t seem fancy enough. She tries goes through all of her shoes and jewellery and accessories, but nothing seems to be fancy enough to wear to a special wedding. The night before the wedding, Clara has a brilliant idea for a way to make her outfit more colourful, but things don’t quite go to plan. Will she be able to turn something messy into something beautiful in time?
This is a sweet story with special appeal to those children who have an interest in materials, fashion and dressing up. The illustrations are visually appealing with special attention given to the detail of Clara's imagined wedding dresses and the beautiful clothing of the Hindu wedding party Clara attends.
This delightful picture book is published in conjunction with the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. The author, Amy de la Haye was formerly a curator at the V&A and is a Rootstein Hopkins Professor of Dress history and Curatorship at the London College of Fashion. The story reflects this detailed interest in fashion and materials from different eras and the illustrations by Emily Sutton perfectly complement this focus, containing various details from the V&A collections.
Clara Button and the Wedding Day Surprise is the second Clara Button picture book. The first, Clara Button and the Magical Hat Day (KBR review here), is currently featuring as part of an exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum. You can find details of the exhibition here. The exhibition is open from 19 March 2013 – 19 January 2014.
Title: Clara Button and the Wedding Day Surprise
Author: Amy de la Haye
Illustrator: Emily Sutton
Publisher: Bloomsbury/V&A Publishing, $24.99 RRP
Publication Date: September 2013
Format: Hardcover with dust jacket
ISBN: 9781851777006
For ages: 5-8
Type: Picture Book
