What do you think?
Rate this book
Take Two!: A Celebration of Twins
Know some twins, or expecting to? This twinspired collection pairs poems and pictures in a lighthearted salute to the many twins among us.
Old twins, new twins, famous twins, not-at-all-alike twins, side-byside twins, let's play twins, not-yet twins, mirror twins — all kinds of twins! — come together in a collection of original poems by two of our most celebrated authors for young people: J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen. From a wave and a wink to a twin switcheroo, from a rocket to the moon to the old woman who lived in a shoe, these poems and mini facts, whimsically illustrated by Sophie Blackall, will leave even singletons with a twinkle in their eyes. Here is the perfect book to share with the twins in your life — and everyone who loves them.
Old twins, new twins, famous twins, not-at-all-alike twins, side-byside twins, let's play twins, not-yet twins, mirror twins — all kinds of twins! — come together in a collection of original poems by two of our most celebrated authors for young people: J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen. From a wave and a wink to a twin switcheroo, from a rocket to the moon to the old woman who lived in a shoe, these poems and mini facts, whimsically illustrated by Sophie Blackall, will leave even singletons with a twinkle in their eyes. Here is the perfect book to share with the twins in your life — and everyone who loves them.
72 pages, Hardcover
First published March 13, 2012
65 people want to read
About the author
J. Patrick Lewis
134 books104 followersJ. Patrick Lewis is the current Children's Poet Laureate. He has written more than seventy children's books, including Once Upon a Tomb: Gravely Humorous Verses. J. Patrick Lewis lives in Ohio.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
March 31, 2012
This would be a perfect gift for a mother or father of twins, or for twin children. Poems explore twin lift from the womb through childhood. Fun facts about twins are included as footnotes to some of the poems. This is truly a celebration of twins!
December 1, 2012
A book of poetry (and a few facts) about twins. I'm taking it to my identical twin student today to share with her twin!!! (brings back memories of the year I had identical triplets in my class!)
June 13, 2017
Take Two! A Celebration of Twins is a collection of poems about twins. This book includes poems about the surprise of having twins, finding out you’re having twins, when they are born, baby names for twins, how to take care for them, their communication as babies, their interactions as toddlers and as kids, how some are identical, how some are really different from each other, how they might want to differentiate from the other, and this book also includes poems about well-known and popular twins. Apart from the poems, this book also includes little facts about twins on every other page. Facts such as the difference between identical and fraternal twins, that twins have their own zodiac symbol (Gemini).
I liked this book but did not enjoy it as much as others from this selection. This book is a collection of poems but did not have a single cohesive story line. It was just a bunch of random poems about twins. The one thing that saves this book for me is the illustrations by Sophie Blackall. Her illustrations as always is done by water colors and color pencils. The cover of this book is a good representation of the overall book because it includes an illustration of twins with bright colors in the background. This book also includes various cut outs and good use of white space. Although there is included in this book simple illustrated borders around poems with nothing much else. I ended up liking this book, but not as much as I wanted to.
I liked this book but did not enjoy it as much as others from this selection. This book is a collection of poems but did not have a single cohesive story line. It was just a bunch of random poems about twins. The one thing that saves this book for me is the illustrations by Sophie Blackall. Her illustrations as always is done by water colors and color pencils. The cover of this book is a good representation of the overall book because it includes an illustration of twins with bright colors in the background. This book also includes various cut outs and good use of white space. Although there is included in this book simple illustrated borders around poems with nothing much else. I ended up liking this book, but not as much as I wanted to.
October 30, 2021
Take Two!: A Celebration of Twins author won the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Patrick Lewis divided the story uniquely up into four sections including, "Wins in the waiting womb,” “Twinfants,” “How to be one” and “Famous twins”. This story encourages twins to be themselves while still connecting with their twin in their own way. Teachers can read this to their classroom and express how important individuality is as well as friendship and family.
March 14, 2012
Did you know that "twin" comes from the German word, "twine" which means "two together?"
This is the first fact that greats the reader of this wonderful celebration of twins from the womb to the showing up and to the growing up together.
J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen team up for these delightful explorations into the world of twins. From playful couplets to a sonnet crafted with one word lines, readers are taken through poetic forms while getting a glimpse into the world of twins.
The poems are anchored by short facts regarding twins bringing a non-fiction element into the playful verse.
J. Patrick Lewis celebrate the unique nature of twins both as a set and as individuals within a set. More than one poem reminded me of the twins I have had in class before.
The very last section of poems celebrates famous twins.
Sophie Blackall's (IVY AND BEAN) illustrations are whimsical and sometimes very natural (wink). Don't miss those in-the-womb illustrations, particularly one of brothers racing to their births.
Take Two! A Celebration of Twins would make a wonderful gift book for those twins in your life or as an inclusion within a classroom library where twins might be a part of the learning community.
This is the first fact that greats the reader of this wonderful celebration of twins from the womb to the showing up and to the growing up together.
J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen team up for these delightful explorations into the world of twins. From playful couplets to a sonnet crafted with one word lines, readers are taken through poetic forms while getting a glimpse into the world of twins.
The poems are anchored by short facts regarding twins bringing a non-fiction element into the playful verse.
J. Patrick Lewis celebrate the unique nature of twins both as a set and as individuals within a set. More than one poem reminded me of the twins I have had in class before.
The very last section of poems celebrates famous twins.
Sophie Blackall's (IVY AND BEAN) illustrations are whimsical and sometimes very natural (wink). Don't miss those in-the-womb illustrations, particularly one of brothers racing to their births.
Take Two! A Celebration of Twins would make a wonderful gift book for those twins in your life or as an inclusion within a classroom library where twins might be a part of the learning community.
March 1, 2012
I've been waiting a long time for this volume to be published. When I first heard about the idea, I was actually surprised that no one had written a collection of poems about twins. Appropriately, J. Patrick Lewis, who is himself a twin, and Jane Yolen, the grandmother of twins, have combined their considerable writing talents in 44 poems celebrating the wonders--and challenges--of twins. The book is divided into four sections: "Twins in the Waiting Womb," "Twinfants," "How to Be One," and "Famous Twins." Readers will find many verses with insight into twins and their unique relationships with one another and poems filled with word play to delight their ears. Among my favorites are "Big Fight: Round One" and "Big Fight: Round Two." I also enjoyed "Pairs" and "Twinsburg, Ohio," which describes an annual gathering of twins. Not only are the poem titles often cleverly written, but the book is filled with twin facts at the bottom of several pages. The watercolor, pencil, and painted paper collage illustrations show twins in their infinite varieties. Young readers are sure to be fascinated with this delightful title.
March 23, 2015
This book is a good book about two twins as you can see by the cover. The one thing I do admire a lot about this book is every illustration has the twins together so you can never truly loose focus of what the book is about.
Also the book has numerous facts about twins and in an interesting fashion they turn them into poems. To me this is personally a good book because I have twin sisters myself, but they are fraternal so it is fun to read about twins. The author does a good job in not just writing about when they are born, but all phases of their life, before they are born and when they are grown up.
Though it is not just about one set of twins, Lewis and Jane Yolen do a good job of talking about different types of twins, which keeps the reader interested. The illustrations seem to be simple, but they tell a lot, they match up evenly with the poems for each story in good fashion. It seems to be a perfect match seeing how the authors Lewis and Jane Yolen are twins. It is a great book to read for children, but also for adults who have twins, it would be good humor for a mother of twins i think, it is just a good book to pick up and read with poetry and life all in one.
Also the book has numerous facts about twins and in an interesting fashion they turn them into poems. To me this is personally a good book because I have twin sisters myself, but they are fraternal so it is fun to read about twins. The author does a good job in not just writing about when they are born, but all phases of their life, before they are born and when they are grown up.
Though it is not just about one set of twins, Lewis and Jane Yolen do a good job of talking about different types of twins, which keeps the reader interested. The illustrations seem to be simple, but they tell a lot, they match up evenly with the poems for each story in good fashion. It seems to be a perfect match seeing how the authors Lewis and Jane Yolen are twins. It is a great book to read for children, but also for adults who have twins, it would be good humor for a mother of twins i think, it is just a good book to pick up and read with poetry and life all in one.
March 13, 2013
I thought this was a very creative book about twins. I know that as I child I was always intrigued by twins. This book has great facts about twins that are made into short poems for young readers. The poems are creatively written with many interesting and exciting words. What is interesting to note about this book is the it goes through all different stages of the twin's life; even before they are born. I think this makes it even more interesting to read for the reader.
The illustrations provide a great completion to each poem. I think many students would enjoy reading this. Especially those that are twins.
The illustrations provide a great completion to each poem. I think many students would enjoy reading this. Especially those that are twins.
January 26, 2013
Very cute. Poems range from identical twins to fraternal twins to famous twins (the Chang and Eng conjoined twin poem struck me as a little sad, though...), from twins before birth (I had to explain what an ultrasound was and that a 'womb' was the special place in a momma where babies grow before they are born) to grown up twins, from sticking together no matter what to sometimes wanting to be alone.
Read January 2013
Read January 2013
April 1, 2012
Love this new poetry book! Fun poems by J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolen (Who knew that J. Patrick Lewis was a twin?) And the illustrations by Sophie Blackall are a great match. Lots of little twin facts are spread throughout the book too. This book is truly a celebration of twins.
June 1, 2012
This collection of poems about twins is a masterpiece. Spanning ages from in utero through adulthood, every possible viewpoint makes an appearance. You don't need to have twins in the family to love this, but it helps.
May 19, 2012
Read our review here: http://readforyourfuture.blogspot.com...
July 3, 2012
I haven't tried this yet on my own twin grandsons but I think they will like it a lot. Nice for adults expecting or caring for young twins too.
June 6, 2013
Perfect gift for the twins' first birthday. I called it, Tyler! You gotta find a different book for them ;)
April 13, 2016
A collection of poems all about twins: in the womb, as infants, how to be one and famous twins. By and large, very entertaining poems that are sure to appeal to twins of all types.
March 22, 2012
Poems and songs along with interesting facts about twins.
January 21, 2016
Poetry about twins
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews