Spotty [Paperback]

H. A. Rey (Author), Margret Rey (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Tired of being treated differently by his family just because he is spotted and the other rabbits are white, Spotty sets out on his own to seek acceptance. This edition of the original 1940s classic, with its vintage pictures and optimistic ending, offers a story that still needs to be told.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The Reys were born in Hamburg, Germany. Hans Augusto Rey (1898-1977) met his wife-to-be, Margret (1906-1996), at a party in her father's home in Germany; when he first caught a glimpse of her, she was sliding down the banister. In their twenties and thirties they lived in Paris and in Rio de Janeiro, where Hans sold bathtubs in villages along the Amazon River. Eventually Cambridge, Massachusetts, became the Reys' home and community. Throughout their lives the Reys created many lively books together, including SPOTTY, PRETZEL, and lift-the-flap books such as HOW DO YOU GET THERE? The manuscript of the first Curious George books was one of the few items the Reys carried with them on their bicycles when they escaped from Paris in 1940. Eventually, they made their way to the United States, and CURIOUS GEORGE was published in 1941. Their incorrigible little monkey has become an American icon, selling millions of books and capturing the hearts of readers everywhere. CURIOUS GEORGE has been published in many languages, including French, German, Japanese, Afrikaans, and Norwegian. Additional Curious George books followed, as well as such other favorites as CECILY G. AND THE NINE MONKEYS and FIND THE CONSTELLATIONS.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: HMH Books (April 28, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0395837324
• ISBN-13: 978-0395837320
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 7.4 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,015,935 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The story is not without moral, but I just feel uncomfortable reading it (hear me out), February 26, 2009

By 

Mama (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spotty (Paperback)

I actually have a quite different view of the book. While I certainly see the merits of discussing issues and I really don't believe children take away from the book all that an adult would, I have to say that I feel uncomfortable reading this book to my four year old. I consider myself rather progressive. I live in the metro DC area and am mid-30's and have one 4 yo child. I guess since I haven't found the opportunity to discuss these issues with my daughter yet, I haven't felt it is something she can't grow up without (as others have suggested). Here are some of the reasons why:

* When talking to Aunt Eliza, Mother Bunny cries because her son Spotty is brown and not white and looks different than her other children. She is worried about what Grandpa might think. (My thought: who cares?)
* Little Rosie asked Aunt Eliza about her brown bunny brother named Spotty. "Don't you like brown spots, Auntie?" to which Eliza answers, "I certainly don't... go and play now."
* On two occasions, Mother Bunny tells Rosie to "stop asking questions" on a very important issue because it's a bad time for her-- first it's dinnertime, later it's bedtime). (My thought: nice.)
* Aunt Eliza advises Mother Bunny to leave Spotty home because he might upset Grandpa. She admonishes with, "you certainly don't intend to spoil the day for Grandpa and all the family."
* Mother Bunny gives in. The author writes, "So she had to go and tell Spotty that he was to stay home." (Huh? She HAD to...?) Mother Bunny told her little bunny, "It's just because of your brown spots... I'm so afraid that Grandpa may not like you as well as the others. I wish we could take you, Spotty, but we'll bring you something nice from the party." Rosie protests, but Mother says he'll have a "nice quiet day at home. Spotty could not say a word." (Yeah, I guess not.)
* The family leaves him behind and Spotty can't even eat his breakfast. He gets a chemical off of the shelf and tries to remove his spots to no avail. He then determines that it would be "easier for Mum" and for himself if he left his family and ran away from home. As he's walking, it begins to rain and he feels "tired," "lonesome," "scared" and "very sad."
* The book goes on and Spotty meets a family of brown bunnies that look just like him. They are called the Brown family. In this family, there is one isolated bunny that is "all white with pink eyes and a pink nose." Mr. Brown "lowered his voice" to explain to Spotty who the "strange looking" bunny is that is cowering in the corner. He further explains that Grandma "would be upset if she saw Whitie."

Yes, there are definitely merits and a moral to the story. I think that the book was written in a time that it was very important to discuss unspoken bigotry and unbased biases. But I think it's a sign of the times that I am (and I'd have to guess a few others might agree) that some of the elements of the book send the wrong signal. (Again, kids don't pick up major cues from stories. I totally get that... I think this is more about my discomfort in reading it.)

Merits/Morals:

They talk about the fact that Spotty is able to hide better and early on, Mother says that she loves Spotty for the way he is and Mr. Brown says that he has "always loved Whitie" and that "it all seems pretty foolish." Mother Bunny cries when she reads Spotty's note that said that he was running away and she and her family prepared to go out and look for little Spotty. And in the end, Mother Bunny says that she was "foolish" and she kissed Mr. Brown and then "everybody kissed everybody and everybody asked everybody's name and everybody laughed and danced and sang." I'm not saying the book is without merit. It just makes me squirm to read it and there are about a million other books with wonderful morals that I could read before this one.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Daughter loves it!, June 5, 2003

By 

SchoolontheHill "liz976" (Newark, OH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spotty (Paperback)

My daughter, age 4, just loves this book. It is a paragraph book, not a one-liner read-aloud, and adults will find it enjoyable to read to children. The basic story is that Spotty has spots while his siblings don't. He gets left behind, runs away (which I usually don't like to see in stories, but I just correct verbally to express the dangers of and move on), and gets taken in by a family of spotted bunnies who have ostracized their plain bunny just the same as he was an outcast in his family! So, of course, eventually all the bunnies get together and learn that the spots and colors don't really matter and that it's more important to be kind and loving... all told in the warm medium of adorable bunnies which any child would love. It's rather hard to find these days, but worth buying!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Favorite book found again!, June 8, 2004

By 

Linda Smith "book lover" (Westport, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spotty (Paperback)

Growing up in the 50's, Spotty was my favorite book (even though I loved my dad's classic children's book, Little Toot, very much too). I have one dog-eared copy but wanted one(s) for my grandchildren. And I found it here!

I have spent a life trying to treat everyone the same and not put people into categories by their color, ethnic background, their economic status ... and guess what??? I now realize that I absorbed these values from reading Spotty as a young girl! It tells so gently what it feels like to be a spotted bunny in a family of white bunnies (and ostracized) and how it feels like to be a white bunny in a family of spotted bunnies (also made to feel "different").

Do your kids and grandkids a real life-long favor by reading this enjoyable, heart-warming, positive book to them. It changed my life and could change theirs.

Linda Gramatky Smith