ALA Booklist

Brownie, the girl with the bobbed hairdo, and Pearl, her calico kitty, are in dress-up mode. Brownie finds a feather boa. "Pearl finds pearls." From there, it's powder to lipstick to glitter. The often one-word text is so simple that this can be used as an early reader ("Lipstick?"). But the real draw is the endearing digitally rendered artwork, which fills the pages and features large, simple images that can be easily seen in group settings. Although few cats would allow themselves to be so gussied up, Pearl doesn't seem to mind; she's as excited as Brownie to be "so DOLLED UP!" Fun.

Kirkus Reviews

The second Brownie and Pearl outing ( Brownie & Pearl Step Out , 2010) solidifies Brownie as a true girly-girl when she squeezes in a bit of dress-up fun before bedtime. Although she's already wearing her purple pajamas, she and her cat Pearl raid a dresser for a pink feather boa, pearls, face powder, lipstick ("For Brownie," reads the text—it'd be tough for a cat to pucker up) and perfume. Hair brushed, and shod in unmentioned, though obvious, grown-upsized purple heels, Brownie and Pearl show themselves off to the adults, presumably Brownie's more conservatively clad parents. Artwork reveals only the bottom half of the adults' bodies on the verso page, firmly situating the attention on the little girl and her pet, who look mighty pleased with themselves as the parents announce, "You are so dolled up!" By book's end, they are cozied up in bed with the boa still around them and glitter dotting their faces. Biggs's digitally produced art matches the sweet sense of fun captured by Rylant's text, together creating a lovely, girly bedtime story. (Picture book/early reader. 3-6)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

In the second book to feature Brownie and her kitty, Pearl, they%E2%80%99re getting dressed to the nines. Each page focuses on a different adornment Brownie and Pearl select: %E2%80%9CBrownie finds feathers. Pearl finds pearls.... A little powder? Yes!%E2%80%9D). The lipstick, though, is just %E2%80%9Cfor Brownie.%E2%80%9D She goes to town with the glitter, and when they step out, %E2%80%9Ceveryone%E2%80%9D (aka her parents) comments on how %E2%80%9Cdolled up%E2%80%9D they are. Readers should, once again, enjoy being privy to Brownie and Pearl%E2%80%99s special world. Ages 3%E2%80%935. (May)

School Library Journal (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

PreS-Gr 1 In this follow-up to Brownie & Pearl Step Out (S & S, 2009), Brownie, draped in a pink feather boa, applies pink lipstick, pink glitter, "rosy spray," and powder, and brushes her hair. Her cat gets a string of pearls around her furry neck and similar treatment. When they emerge from the bedroom, her parents exclaim, "You are so dolled up!" And "Brownie and Pearl know it." The simple text is set in big bold type and is perfect for beginning readers. Digitally rendered cartoon illustrations feature expressive close-ups of the "dolling up" routine and lots of pinkon fingernails, toes, bedding, and more. Carrie Rogers-Whitehead, Kearns Library, UT