Who's Who?

by Ken Geist, Henry Cole (Illustrator)

Overview

Over in these pages
where it's hard to tell who's who,
live six pairs of twins
who are the best at what they do.

"Laugh!" say the twins.
"We laugh!" So will you.

And you'll giggle as you read
while you try to tell who's who.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466816480
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	08/07/2012
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	28
File size:	77 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	1 - 3 Years

About the Author

Ken Geist is an editor of children's books. He lives in New York City with his joyous twins, Owen and Kei--the inspiration for Who's Who?--along with his two older singletons.

Henry Cole is the acclaimed illustrator of nearly 100 children's books. He has twin hobbies of gardening and drawing, and twin homes, one in Florida and one in Virginia. Visit him online at henrycole.net.

Ken Geist is an editor of children's books. He lives in New York City with his joyous twins, Owen and Kei--the inspiration for Who's Who?--along with his two older singletons.

Henry Cole has illustrated more than ninety books for children, including Unspoken, which received several starred reviews and is a New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year, the popular (and often banned) And Tango Makes Three, and I Know a Wee Piggy, which received two starred reviews. He lives in both Florida and Virginia.

Editorial Reviews

Geist offers a high-spirited salute to animal sounds, movements, and twin siblings, riffing on the nursery rhyme “Over in the Meadow.” Geist’s verse introduces various sibling pairs in outdoor settings: “Over in the barnyard/ where the cows moo and moo,/ lives a noisy little calf/ and her loud twin, Blue./ ‘Moo!’ said the sister./ ‘We moo,’ said the two./ So they moo and they chew/ where the cows moo and moo.” Cole dresses his expressive cartoon animal twins in goofy, nearly matching outfits and provides plenty of action beyond that mentioned in the verse. A zippy if conventional spin on this familiar rhyme. Ages 1–3. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

“The illustrations of fully dressed featured animals are colorful, as are the beasts, birds, and people…” —School Library Journal

“Geist offers a high-spirited salute to animal sounds, movements, and twin siblings…” —Publishers Weekly

“The author's note to this fun-for-the-tongue book says Ken Geist was inspired to write it by his own brother and sister twins.…Henry Cole's illustrations add to the fun--from the argyle pattern end pages to a boisterous bunch of creatures who look like they could have come out of a popular cartoon show.” —Children's Literature

“This serviceable bedtime story will find the most appeal with families of multiples and brother/sister pairs.” —Kirkus

“…a fun exercise made vivid by the bright acrylic-and-color-pencil illustrations featuring plenty of warm, romping cartoon details (the bats wear Batman logos on tiny T-shirts). According to an opening note, the book was inspired by the famous nineteenth-century counting rhyme 'Over in the Meadow,' by Olive A. Wadsworth.” —Booklist

From the Publisher

The author's note to this fun-for-the-tongue book says Ken Geist was inspired to write it by his own brother and sister twins. So this adaptation of the "Over in the meadow" counting rhyme features six sets of animal twins in a variety of settings from barnyard to meadow to jungle to cave to a final set of owls calling "who" in the night forest. In each pair of spreads, the setting and creatures are introduced and on the next page one twin tells the other what they do. "Moo, said the sister. "We moo," said the two. So they moo and they chew/where the cows moo and moo." Henry Cole's illustrations add to the fun—from the argyle pattern end pages to a boisterous bunch of creatures who look like they could have come out of a popular cartoon show. Reviewer: Mary Hynes-Berry

Children's Literature - Mary Hynes-Berry

A classic counting rhyme is subjected to a lackluster treatment in this retelling that focuses on twins. Inspired by his own set of twins and the repetitive rhythm of the poem "Over in the Meadow," Geist features six pairs of animal twins in various habitats. Beginning with a calf twosome on a farm ("Over in the barnyard / where the cows moo and moo, / lives a noisy little calf / and her loud twin, Blue"), the rhyming text continues with bunnies that hop in a garden, long-tailed monkeys that swing in jungle trees, shiny fish that swim in a pond, "itty bitty" bats that flap in a cave, and, finally, silly owlets in the night sky, which giggle and wish children a good night. Cole's cartoonish animals, rendered in acrylic and colored pencil, are usually the highlight of any of his collaborations. Perhaps drawing little inspiration from the pedestrian text, the illustrations lack his typical energy and charm. This serviceable bedtime story will find the most appeal with families of multiples and brother/sister pairs. [Note: An earlier version of this review was published in the July 1, 2012, issue and cited a concern based on a preliminary copy of the book. We publish herewith this revised review, as the problematic text was removed in the final, edited version.] (Picture book. 1-5)

Kirkus Reviews