From School Library Journal
PreS-Gr 2-A delightful choreography of rhythm, rhyme, and repetition that begs to be read aloud in tandem by children and adults, or by any pairing of beginning readers. The gist of the book is that reading aloud and listening as others read aloud is an integral part of early literacy. "Here's a book/With something new-/You read to me!/I'll read to you!" instructs a passage in the introduction. Thirteen two-page humorous "stories" feature enduring childhood subjects like animals, play, likes and dislikes, friends, and family. All are liberally decorated with Emberley's witty, exuberant, pastel-colored cartoon illustrations. Brief verses appear on the left, right, or center of each page and are printed in three different colors to signal whose turn it is to read (or when it's time to read together). Simple yet varied vocabulary is used throughout. All of the selections conclude with a twist on the "you read to me/I'll read to you" refrain. The combination of short, rhythmic stories and cheerful art is a winning one, making this title a valuable addition to picture-book collections.Mary Ann Carcich, Mattituck-Laurel Public Library, Mattituck, NYCopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Gr. 2-3. Inspired by work with the Literacy Volunteers of America, Hoberman offers 13 rhymed variations on the theme of getting together to read. The short poems are designed to be read aloud by two voices, with occasional parts to share. Color-coded text in double columns makes it easy to distinguish the parts. Each poem revolves around a simple incident: in "The Dime," two children decide what to do with the coin one has found; in "I Like" young neighbors finish the phrase, "I like . . . " in different ways. The energy never flags, neither in Hoberman's trademark bouncy rhythms nor in Emberley's exuberant illustrations, which picture a wonderful array of children and animals tumbling across the pages. It's a worthy message, lightly but strongly delivered: "In the shade (Or in the sun) / Choose a book (That looks like fun.) / One that's old (Or one that's new.) / Make-believe (Or really true.) / I'll read one line (I'll read two.) / You'll read to me. / I'll read to you." John Peters
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Introducing a unique book every one should have to help him or her learn to love reading. With type set in three columns and three colors for easy readability, each short, rhymed story in this collection is like a little play for two voices. They are about all kinds of thing: bears, birthdays, puppies, snowmen, friendships, and more. But no matter what their subject, they all feature traditional reading techniques-rhyme, rhythm, and repetition-and finishing with a satisfying refrain.

Author Biography: Mary Ann Hoberman's work with Literacy Volunteers of America provided the inspiration for this book, which is to promote literacy by reading to, and listening to, each other.

FROM THE CRITICS

Book Magazine

In this treat for young readers (or adults learning to read), the two-page stories mix two voices: purple typeface on the left for one voice, red on the right for the other—and blue for the two voices together. Short words, energetic rhythms and carefully crafted rhymes bounce the stories along, with cartoonlike illustrations to add humor. This clever, attractive book promises to become a staple for beginning readers. —Kristin Kloberdanz

Publishers Weekly

John Ciardi's collection of 35 poems with drawings by Edward Gorey is perhaps the best known book with this title (published in 1962); it, too, used the concept of dividing a poem on the page, designed for a more experienced reader to read with a child. Hoberman (One of Each) here creates a collection of 12 rhyming and heavily repetitious dialogues, each one ending with the emphasis on reading together (e.g., "I'll read to you. You'll read to me"; "We'll read together,/ You and I"). In "The Dime," a pig discovers that the coin he found may actually be the lost money of his rabbit friend. A discussion ensues: "Shall we divide the dime in two?"/ "A nickel each? It's up to you."/ Or shall we buy/ One thing to share?"/ "That would be fun, that would fair." Another playful poem, "The Bear," takes on an incredulous tone; when a boy's little brother tells a bear he can spend the night as long as he does not snore, the boy's friend replies, "Your little brother/ Sounds quite brave/ To tell a bear/ How to behave." But while the mood is light, the text never really takes flight. In addition to similar phrases, the rhyme scan is nearly identical in all of the poems; the tone becomes monotonous. However, each of Emberley's (Happy Birth Day!) spot illustrations is unique and, in total, the artwork creates relationships among the characters. Working in watercolor, pen and pastel, he endows his characters with an edgy expressiveness that leaps off the page. Ages 4-up. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Children's Literature - Kelvin Byrd

This book contains many different short stories that two people can read together. All containing positive lessons, each story has at least two characters that face a problem or experience an adventure. For example, in "The Dime," the pig finds a dime, but his friend the cat feels that the money belongs to him. Instead of the characters keeping the money and destroying their friendship, they decide to purchase a book and take turns reading the book to one another. Another story that has a positive lesson is "I Hate My Hat." The characters in the story are raccoons, and one raccoon continually says, "I hate my hat." The other raccoon says that "hate" is not a nice word to say and compliments his friend for wearing the hat, so that no one needs to speak the word "hate" at all. This book also possesses characteristics of a play because the text offers a dual speaking part. One reader reads the purple colored sentences, the other reads the pink colored sentences and both readers read the blue sentences together. The color-coding also teaches the concept of following directions. Children of all ages need to know how to follow directions because they will encounter many areas in their lives that will require them to follow directions, both at school and at home. 2001, Little Brown and Company, Ages 4 to 8.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-A delightful choreography of rhythm, rhyme, and repetition that begs to be read aloud in tandem by children and adults, or by any pairing of beginning readers. The gist of the book is that reading aloud and listening as others read aloud is an integral part of early literacy. "Here's a book/With something new-/You read to me!/I'll read to you!" instructs a passage in the introduction. Thirteen two-page humorous "stories" feature enduring childhood subjects like animals, play, likes and dislikes, friends, and family. All are liberally decorated with Emberley's witty, exuberant, pastel-colored cartoon illustrations. Brief verses appear on the left, right, or center of each page and are printed in three different colors to signal whose turn it is to read (or when it's time to read together). Simple yet varied vocabulary is used throughout. All of the selections conclude with a twist on the "you read to me/I'll read to you" refrain. The combination of short, rhythmic stories and cheerful art is a winning one, making this title a valuable addition to picture-book collections.-Mary Ann Carcich, Mattituck-Laurel Public Library, Mattituck, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews