Grace and Katie by Susanne Merritt and Liz Anelli

EK Books, 2017. ISBN 9781925335545
Twins Grace and Katie like to draw but their drawings are very different. Grace's drawings are done with a variety of pens and pencils, all black and full of straight lines, angles, shapes and precision. Katie's are done with all sorts of media in all sorts of colours, and filled with patterns, squiggles and swirls and imagination.
Neither cares much for the other's style until one day they both decide to draw their home. Grace's is like a map and organised, Kate's is full of people and bright and colourful. But then both girls realise there is something missing . . .
This is an interesting exploration of the difference between twins who so often are assumed to be the same, particularly when they look so alike. Illustrator Liz Anelli has emphasised the difference between the two girls by giving Grace a straight, organised hairstyle while Kate's is more every-which-way, a bit like her. But essentially, physically they are the same. However that's where the similarities end - you can imagine that Grace would have a sensible, neat, organised bedroom and lifestyle while Kate's would be the opposite and yet outsiders would assume that because they look alike they must also be alike and think alike.
Stories about twins are not common so this is a great addition to the collection so that not only can the children read about themselves in a book but also send a message to the world that they are individuals first but lucky enough to share the special bond that twins have and which both girls discover.
Barbara Braxton