July 18, 2022
As a child narrator, portrayed with light brown skin, muses on what things humans are “like,” the whole world is delightfully up for grabs. People, the kid posits, are not at all like tin cans (“If you open up our lids, nothing good happens”), a little like swimming pools (all that water), more like mushrooms, less like excavators, and comparatively similar to hyenas. Every “like” has a catch, however—hyenas neither talk nor “get embarrassed, even when they’re caught eating something off the ground.” But people take similarity to a wholly different—and connective—level. Even factoring in differences, says the child, “I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth.” (Even a mushroom.) Barrow’s (the Ivy and Bean series) sweetly irreverent narrator should turn readers into eager students of classification, while—in illustrations that highlight humans of varying abilities, ages, body types, and skin tones—Espinosa’s (The World Belonged to Us) poster-like colors and midcentury modern playfulness make this volume far more fun than any academic compare-and-contrast exercise. Ages 3–5. Author’s agent: Liza Dawson, Liza Dawson Assoc.
September 1, 2022
A child ruminates over things in the world that are like and unlike them. Looking up from the page with an engaging smile, the brown-skinned narrator greets viewers as fellow humans and then, in a wandering train of thought, reflects on how we are different from most things--like a can of soup ("If you open up our lids, nothing good happens")--but do have at least some similarities to, for instance, a mushroom or a hyena. This leads to ways in which people are distinctively alike, from wearing clothes to being embarrassed sometimes. And, all things considered, aren't people more alike than different? In keeping with that insight, everyone in Espinosa's bright retro illustrations is likewise individually distinct, from the young narrator's parents (one is brown-skinned; the other is light-skinned) to each of the 15 diverse passersby in a climactic crowd scene, but at the same time recognizably human. "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth," the young observer concludes. "I'm glad." For readers who come away trying to think of other traits that define us, Susan Verde's even more searching I Am Human (2018), illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds, makes a helpful follow-up. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A strong argument for the logic of inclusivity, founded on our having more in common than in conflict. (Picture book. 6-9)
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Starred review from September 1, 2022
Preschool-Grade 1 *Starred Review* This uproarious picture book works on kids' funny bones to get across the message that, despite any superficial differences, we humans are all alike. It starts with a curly-haired boy looking directly at the reader and saying, "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth." He then proceeds to present a series of nonhumans (a tomato can, a swimming pool, a mushroom, an excavator, a hyena). The collage-like, brightly colored illustrations juxtapose what is nonhuman with the boy, starting with his wry comment on the tomato can: "If you open our lids, nothing good comes out." The compare/contrast argument progresses from things we have very little in common with (the tomato can), to the pool (we both hold water), the mushroom (we both need air, water, and food), the excavator (we both can dig, but the excavator is much better at it), and finally the hyena, which can move and run (but might eat your baby brother). Each contrast brings up the advantages humans have over inanimate objects or animals. Finally, we arrive at a classroom and a streetscape filled with people of different ages, races, religions, and abilities. The book's silliness makes its argument accessible to all.
COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Starred review from January 1, 2023
"You are you, and I am I. We are people...This makes us different from most of the things on Earth." Head crowned with a mass of brown curly hair, this book's narrator speaks directly to readers, guiding them through several silly yet thought-provoking comparisons. Do humans have anything in common with tin cans? No. "We are not shaped like tin cans. We cannot hold tomato sauce like tin cans." Humans have some minor similarities to swimming pools (water) and excavators (digging, but not as efficiently), but a person is "way more like a mushroom" and has even more in common with a hyena. Barrows's (the Ivy + Bean chapter books) straightforward text seems at first to be an exercise in comparing living and nonliving things, but it's ultimately a lesson in empathy toward our fellow humans. "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth." Espinosa's (The World Belonged to Us, rev. 7/22) bold, blocky, and vibrant illustrations enhance the text's humor and heart with the punch of a pop-art palette. A compelling thought-experiment with a powerful, effective, and timely message. Grace McKinney
(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
January 1, 2023
"You are you, and I am I. We are people... This makes us different from most of the things on Earth." Head crowned with a mass of brown curly hair, this book's narrator speaks directly to readers, guiding them through several silly yet thought-provoking comparisons. Do humans have anything in common with tin cans? No. "We are not shaped like tin cans. We cannot hold tomato sauce like tin cans." Humans have some minor similarities to swimming pools (water) and excavators (digging, but not as efficiently), but a person is "way more like a mushroom" and has even more in common with a hyena. Barrows's (the Ivy + Bean chapter books) straightforward text seems at first to be an exercise in comparing living and nonliving things, but it's ultimately a lesson in empathy toward our fellow humans. "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth." Espinosa's (The World Belonged to Us, rev. 7/22) bold, blocky, and vibrant illustrations enhance the text's humor and heart with the punch of a pop-art palette. A compelling thought-experiment with a powerful, effective, and timely message.
(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)