As a writer, I feel a shiver of dread when I find out someone else is publishing a book on the same topic as mine. But for young readers, having two books on the same topic can open up great learning opportunities. It gives them a chance to compare and contrast theme, word choice, authorial intent as shown by details included, and how the art works with the text. Two heads are better than one!
I admit that I was not happy when The Girl Who Ran by Kristina Yee came out just months before my own book about Bobbi Gibb, Girl Running. But other wiser people, realized that two books about one event can prompt great discussion about the process of writing biography. Later this year, Her Fearless Run: Kathrine Switzer’s Historic Boston Marathon by Kim Chaffee will add a third book to the set about early female marathoners. I like the idea that Chaffee, Yee, and I have created a set of books for young readers to compare and contrast.
Venn diagrams can be a great way to get kids to start brainstorming similarities and differences in texts. Those details can lead to more probing questions:
- Why did this author choose these details?
- How does the tone differ in the books? What kinds of feelings are they trying to evoke in the reader?
- Are there pages where the art is very similar? Very different? How does the art help tell the story?
When it comes to teaching kids to read critically, two books is probably better than one! Here are some more book pairs that can lead to powerful comparisons:
Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist by Jess Keating and
Swimming with Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark by Heather Lang
Ada’s Ideas: The Story of Ada Lovelace, the World’s First Computer Programmer by Fiona Robinson and Ada Byron Lovelace and the Thinking Machine by Laurie Wallmark and Ada Lovelace, Poet of Science: The First Computer Programmer by Diane Stanley
Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein by Don Brown and On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne and Albie’s First Word: A Tale Inspired by Albert Einstein’s Childhood by Jacqueline Tourville
Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown and Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales and Frida by Jonah Winter
The House that Jane Built: A Story about Jane Addams by Tonya Lee Stone and Dangerous Jane by Suzanne Slade
The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter and Me, Jane by Patrick McDonnell
Malala’s Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai and For the Right to Learn by Rebecca Langston-George and Malala: Activist for Girls’ Education by Raphaele Frier and Free as a Bird: The Story of Malala by Lina Maslo
Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa by Jeanette Winter and Wangari Maathai: The Woman Who Planted Millions of Trees by Franck Prevot and Seeds of Change: Wangari’s Gift to the World by Jen Cullerton Johnson
Are there other book pairing you like to share with young readers?
Quick and happy note: Girl Running ended up on this year’s Amelia Bloomer list!
Annette! I love this post and I couldn’t agree more! Bring on all the biographies! ❤️🏃🏻♀️
It’s a terrific post, Annette. I didn’t know about ‘The Girl Who Ran’ even though it came out before your book. I’ve read at least one of each of these pairings, like the idea of pairing & having students look at each to see what parts are shared the same & what new things are included. I would add that several have written about Maria Mitchell, astronomer & when I looked, another one is coming this fall! My favorite, though not a picture book, is Jeannine Atkins’ “Finding Wonders”. I imagine you know that no one has written again about your “Mountain Chef”.