The Twins' Blanket

 

 

Title: the twins' blanket

Author: Hyewon Yum

Published By: Frances Foster Books

I was intriged by this book just from the cover, the title and how it is written in lower-case letters. That is what caught my eye and I just had to read it. This book is about twin girls who look alike and share everything, especially a blanket that they have had ever since they were born.  But now the blanket has gotten too small for them to share.  Neither girl wants to give it to the other though.  Their mother tells them that they are going to be moving to big kid beds and that she will make each of them a new blanket.  They each pick out a fabric, one yellow with flowers, the other pink with birds and flowers.  They wash the fabric, dry it on the line, and then their mother sews the blankets.  When they are done, they have two new blankets that each have a piece of the original as well as their own personality.  Then they have to see what sleeping apart for the first time is like!

Yum has created a wonderful story about twins that shows the sibling relationship  and all of its complexity, yet remains accessible for small children.  The girls both want to be alike and together, yet also want to be different and apart at the same time.   Even down to their stuffed animals that are alike but different, the one sister has a bear, same color, the other sister has a rabbit. They are the same color and both have eyes, ears and mouth but they are still different. Just like the girls, they are twins but unique in their own way. One sister parts her hair on the side an the other parts her hair down the middle.  As for the story it is  really about their relationship rather than the blanket which is more of a symbol. I do like how the author attaches a piece of the older blanket on both of the new blankets so the twins still have a connection with each other.

Yum’s illustrations are done in deep, rich colors and strong lines.  They have hints of color in unexpected places, creating an additional richness.  The girls while identical are always seen separately and uniquely in the art.