This & That

by Mem Fox, Judy Horacek (Illustrations)

This & That reunites bestselling picture book author Mem Fox with illustrator Judy Horacek, following their most recent collaboration on Good Night, Sleep Tight.

In this delightful tale, two mice set off on a storytelling adventure that takes them through cavernous caves, atop crazy giraffes, and over palace walls until they return safely home to the comfort of their beds. A sweet, rhyming story, This & That is perfect for helping children develop their sequencing skills!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Storytime, Fiction, Adventure, Love

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2015

About the author

Merrion Frances Fox is an Australian writer of children's books and an educationalist specialising in literacy. Fox has been semi-retired since 1996, but she still gives seminars and lives in Adelaide, South Australia.

Reviews

[Stefanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confused about the audience for this one.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent end of the night bedtime story!

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

What was that? What was this book trying to be? Rhyming and cute? Highlighting the imagination? Spending time together before bed? Blech. I felt that this accomplished none of the above, and instead left me feeling puzzled and unsettled. I love Fox's books normally and this was a let down.

[Casandria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll tell you a story of this and I'll tell you a story of that. But for right now, go to sleep.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Fun Romp - very interactive. LOTS of possibilities!

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

First sentence: I'll tell you a story of this, and I'll tell you a story of that. I'll tell you a story of cavernous caves and a chimp with a magic hat. And then...

Premise/plot: This & That is a book celebrating storytelling and togetherness. It stars two mice: a parent and a child.

My thoughts: It was okay. It does celebrate storytelling, but it does not necessarily celebrate stories themselves. In other words, it's ALL tell, no show. We get hints of five to six stories. But no actual stories. Unless you think one-sentence stories are the most wonderful kinds of stories. Rhymes are emphasized more than stories. 90% of the time the goal is to end up with a rhyme for that. Hat. Cat. Chat. Mat. Fat. The end does switch it up a bit, reverses the order, and we end up looking for a rhyme with this. As an adult, well, I was less than thrilled.

Perhaps as equally entertaining as the text, readers can search the illustrations to find the two mice. I believe they are in every spread. One of the spreads it took me a while to spot them (they're in the queen's crown). They are there "in" the stories. I'm guessing this is all in celebration of imagination and the idea that stories take you places.

Text: 2 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 5 out of 10

[Dimity Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great to see a winning team back in action again. Aimed for the pre school, infant audience even, This & That holds as much appeal for me and readers as Where's The Green Sheep. Catchy bed time tale, that I know will be read over and over and over again, till your fingers bleed from turning the pages!

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is one long rhyme that never tells a true story. It's cute that each page ends with the -at words but I wish there was more to it. The way the book ended with the word "kiss" instead of an -at word did leave me very disappointed and felt like it just threw off the whole book.

[Jillian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad, but not one of my favorites, either. None of the stories actually get finished, plus there are lots of extraneous illustrations that could potentially lead to other untold stories. (So this could be a good starting point for creative bedtime storytelling?)

The rhyming is cute, and the switch from "that" to "this" at the end was nice.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can see why adults don't particularly like this book (there isn't much of a plot), but my toddler loves the sound of it read out loud and likes to join along. The illustrations have a lot going on and could be fun to talk about too.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great choice for storytimes. The repetition is good (have families say "I'll tell you a story of this and I'll tell you a story of that" together) and the rhyme is fun.

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

meh. . .

[Brenda Kahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet story in rhyme, whose soothing, repetition makes for a lovely bedtime book.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great storytime OR bedtime read. Mem Fox delivers, as usual.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rhyming fun that features a mouse child and parent. Good for bedtime because it ends with a goodnight kiss.

[emyrose8 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, kind of boring IMO. :/

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute illustrations, and I loved how the mice transitioned from one scene to the next. But the text didn't really do anything for me at all. It seemed a bit dialed-in, honestly...

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love Mem Fox and the way she uses simple words to tell so much, the pictures add a lot to the overall simple story too.

[The Brothers · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mommy mouse tells her little mouse all sorts of tales before tucking the little on into bed.

Illustrations are ok.

[Chris Hays · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not sensational for the library. It is good to hand to students who are starting to read. However, there is no amazing substance from the teaching perspective. The artwork is solid.

[Terresa Wellborn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rhyming story for toddlers. A lovely book with a sweet ending.

[Keri Douglas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute rhyming with a great Mem Fox touch!

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reasons I loved this book:

- The rhyming cadence is fun
- There is mild repetition
- The story is light and moves quickly
- The illustrations are bold and colorful

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audience: EC-2nd grade
Connections: Story starter, bed time story, rhymes

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 2 yo loves this.

[Jill Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

'This and That' is charming as the little mice go on a journey through caves, and waterfalls, floating down rivers, and climbing trees. There is much more, flamingos and elephants, boys running with cats. The vibrant colours of the vegetable and flower stalls, the brooms and mats, and sheep and giraffes. The children play in the marketplace between dogs and cats and snakes.

This and that takes the child into a world of imagination. Mum mouse tells her little one about this and that until they go home to sleep. Ending with a kiss.

I love Mem Fox's writing. The simple linking of words with delightful illustrations by Judy Horacek that have a child asking - what is This? What is That?

[Cheryl]

Relieved to see that I'm not the only cynic. I think we're lazy, too, though.
I think the creators want the reader to tell the stories, as if it were a wordless book... one is not supposed to just page through it and move along...

So I'm not rating. And maybe someday I'll try again.

Thank you West Duluth Branch Library.

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the drawings but was a bit underwhelmed by the story. I was really hoping to hear more of “this” story and “that” story but it never happened. This book definitely has the feel and wild imagination (with it’s illustrations) of a good bedtime story. It just wasn’t enough for me.

[Mrs Heet -Librarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I normally like this author's books, but this one felt a bit flat. The illustrations were ok, a bit sparse at times, and didn't feel like they went with the story. The story itself felt a bit jumbled, and didn't feel like it fit with the idea well.

[Kit Feral · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute but there was something about it that just didn't flow like Mem Fox usually does for me. This won't become a classic in my arsenal which is unusual.