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From bestselling author Annie Barrows and Pura Belpré Honor award recipient Leo Espinosa, this funny yet thought-provoking picture book offers a sequence of outlandishly fun compare-and-contrasts that show how humans are much more like each other than we are different.
A NEW WAY OF The use of comparison and contrast gives readers a new lens through which to see themselves and others.
HUMOR WITH Annie Barrows uses her trademarked humor to get readers laughing and thinking.
GREAT The silly and surprising text is the perfect read-aloud for homes and classrooms.
Perfect
A NEW WAY OF The use of comparison and contrast gives readers a new lens through which to see themselves and others.
HUMOR WITH Annie Barrows uses her trademarked humor to get readers laughing and thinking.
GREAT The silly and surprising text is the perfect read-aloud for homes and classrooms.
Perfect
44 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 2, 2022
1 person is currently reading
124 people want to read
About the author
Annie Barrows
78 books986 followersAnnie grew up in Northern California, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, with a degree in Medieval History. Unable to find a job in the middle ages, she decided upon a career as an editor, eventually landing at Chronicle Books in San Francisco, where she was in charge of "all the books that nobody in their right mind would publish." After earning an M.F.A. in Creative Writing at Mills College, Annie wrote (as Ann Fiery) a number of books for grown-ups about such diverse subjects as fortune-telling (she can read palms!), urban legends (there are no alligators in the sewer!), and opera (she knows what they're singing about!). In 2003, Annie grew weary of grown-ups, and began to write for kids, which she found to be way more fun.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
December 23, 2022
I get that it is a compare and contrast. (How are we like a tin can vs how are we different from a tin can.)
I get that it builds on itself (we're more like a swimming pool than a tin can)
BUT it is wall to wall text. I barely made it to how we are humans but not exactly like the human sitting next to us.
I get that it builds on itself (we're more like a swimming pool than a tin can)
BUT it is wall to wall text. I barely made it to how we are humans but not exactly like the human sitting next to us.
November 27, 2022
I don't know how to do this book justice. I actually passed by it for about a month because so many books released that week, but now that I've read it, I'm sorry I didn't earlier so I could have recommend it to everyone. By comparing themselves to a multitude of objects – animal, mineral, plant – the main character learns that all humans are ver much alike. In fact, it brought to mind those billboards with two human x-rays side-by-side that say, "we all look the same inside."
Once again, Annie Barrows shows us how capable she is of getting inside of the minds of children and interpreting their way of thinking into book form.
Once again, Annie Barrows shows us how capable she is of getting inside of the minds of children and interpreting their way of thinking into book form.
July 17, 2022
A picture book that brilliantly sets up the thesis that humans are more alike than different by showing the ways we are alike/different to other objects. A great read aloud for Preschool-1st grade classes.
October 28, 2022
A great book for compare and contrast. Very creative and fun!
October 13, 2022
I really love this concept. TALK - preschool+
September 5, 2022
Richie’s Picks: LIKE by Annie Barrows and Leo Espinosa, ill., Chronicle, September 2022, 44p., ISBN: 978-1-4521-6337-6
“There is just one moon
And one golden sun
And a smile means
Friendship to ev'ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It's a small world after all”
– Robert and Richard Sherman (1963)
“It's a Small World” was created for the 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair. Personally overseen by Walt Disney in support of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the attraction was a huge hit. After 2 seasons there, it was shipped to Disneyland park, where it opened on May 28, 1966.
– from the Disney website
I was nine when we attended the 1964-65 World’s Fair in Queens. We had already learned the “It’s a Small World” song at school. The song and ride were designed to promote friendship by highlighting the connections we share as people. They advanced the notion that we are far more alike than we are different, despite such variations as skin colors, languages, foods, and religions.
Two generations later, LIKE by Annie Barrows does a great job of expressing a similar sentiment:
“Here is a mushroom.
Wow! We are way more like a mushroom than a swimming pool!
Mushrooms grow, like we do. They need air and water and food, like we do. They make more mushrooms like we do (okay, okay, we don’t make mushrooms, we make people).
But mushrooms don’t have anything to say, and even if they did, they wouldn’t have a way to say it. They don’t have mouths. They don’t have brains either.
It’s not a rude thing to say. It’s the truth.
We are like a mushroom in a few ways but we are more different than we are alike.”
Accompanied by Leo Espinosa’s colorful illustrations, LIKE compares and contrasts us humans with tin cans, swimming pools, mushrooms, excavators, hyenas and, finally, one another. Annie Barrows’ amusing text does this in a logical and very entertaining fashion. It concludes that while we are not exactly alike, “We are SO MUCH alike!”
“...Even if you get embarrassed when you fall out of your chair, and I get embarrassed when the teacher calls on me, you are more like me than you are like an excavator…”
LIKE will make for a great preschool or kindergarten circle time read. Afterward, young audiences will have a great time choosing some creature or inanimate object and brainstorming the similarities and differences between them and, say, an earthworm or a school bus.
I was going to give the book a thumbs up, but I just read in Business Insider that,
“The thumbs-up gesture is a sign of approval in most countries. However, in several countries in West Africa and the Middle East, including Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan, the gesture has the connotation of ‘up yours!’ It's used the same way the middle finger is in the US.”
So let’s hold off on that.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
https://twitter.com/richiespicks
richiepartington@gmail.com
“There is just one moon
And one golden sun
And a smile means
Friendship to ev'ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It's a small world after all”
– Robert and Richard Sherman (1963)
“It's a Small World” was created for the 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair. Personally overseen by Walt Disney in support of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the attraction was a huge hit. After 2 seasons there, it was shipped to Disneyland park, where it opened on May 28, 1966.
– from the Disney website
I was nine when we attended the 1964-65 World’s Fair in Queens. We had already learned the “It’s a Small World” song at school. The song and ride were designed to promote friendship by highlighting the connections we share as people. They advanced the notion that we are far more alike than we are different, despite such variations as skin colors, languages, foods, and religions.
Two generations later, LIKE by Annie Barrows does a great job of expressing a similar sentiment:
“Here is a mushroom.
Wow! We are way more like a mushroom than a swimming pool!
Mushrooms grow, like we do. They need air and water and food, like we do. They make more mushrooms like we do (okay, okay, we don’t make mushrooms, we make people).
But mushrooms don’t have anything to say, and even if they did, they wouldn’t have a way to say it. They don’t have mouths. They don’t have brains either.
It’s not a rude thing to say. It’s the truth.
We are like a mushroom in a few ways but we are more different than we are alike.”
Accompanied by Leo Espinosa’s colorful illustrations, LIKE compares and contrasts us humans with tin cans, swimming pools, mushrooms, excavators, hyenas and, finally, one another. Annie Barrows’ amusing text does this in a logical and very entertaining fashion. It concludes that while we are not exactly alike, “We are SO MUCH alike!”
“...Even if you get embarrassed when you fall out of your chair, and I get embarrassed when the teacher calls on me, you are more like me than you are like an excavator…”
LIKE will make for a great preschool or kindergarten circle time read. Afterward, young audiences will have a great time choosing some creature or inanimate object and brainstorming the similarities and differences between them and, say, an earthworm or a school bus.
I was going to give the book a thumbs up, but I just read in Business Insider that,
“The thumbs-up gesture is a sign of approval in most countries. However, in several countries in West Africa and the Middle East, including Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan, the gesture has the connotation of ‘up yours!’ It's used the same way the middle finger is in the US.”
So let’s hold off on that.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
https://twitter.com/richiespicks
richiepartington@gmail.com
September 23, 2022
Annie Barrows is the author of one of my all-time favorite books, THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY. I read it back in 2008 and also read her book THE TRUTH ACCORDING TO US in 2015. When this book arrived in the mail, I was thrilled to see her name on the cover.
First of all, I LOVE Espinosa’s illustrations. They have a retro feel and even though they are simple, they fill the page with color and whimsy. He also represents diversity in his illustrations.
Humans are like some things and completely different than others. We are like a swimming pool because we have water and chemicals inside of us, but we don’t have people splashing around inside us. So we are only a little bit like a swimming pool. This book is full of silly comparisons and not-so-obvious comparisons.
Aside from the comparisons to what we are like and how we are different, there is also a discussion about a quality that might make it seem like someone is better than us. Then the book engages with the reader finding ways the reader and the boy in the book are alike and different. But, even if you are different in some ways, you are more alike than being like a hyena or a mushroom.
Overall, this book reminds all of us to embrace our differences and find connections with those who are different from us. Maybe we have different colored skin, but we both love to play soccer. Maybe we are of different ages, but we both love to listen to classical music. This book is great for a classroom or family read-aloud to talk about how we manage our differences with others on the playground, in the classroom, or in our everyday experiences. Kids will love the silly comparisons and realistic conversations that naturally happen after reading.
First of all, I LOVE Espinosa’s illustrations. They have a retro feel and even though they are simple, they fill the page with color and whimsy. He also represents diversity in his illustrations.
Humans are like some things and completely different than others. We are like a swimming pool because we have water and chemicals inside of us, but we don’t have people splashing around inside us. So we are only a little bit like a swimming pool. This book is full of silly comparisons and not-so-obvious comparisons.
Aside from the comparisons to what we are like and how we are different, there is also a discussion about a quality that might make it seem like someone is better than us. Then the book engages with the reader finding ways the reader and the boy in the book are alike and different. But, even if you are different in some ways, you are more alike than being like a hyena or a mushroom.
Overall, this book reminds all of us to embrace our differences and find connections with those who are different from us. Maybe we have different colored skin, but we both love to play soccer. Maybe we are of different ages, but we both love to listen to classical music. This book is great for a classroom or family read-aloud to talk about how we manage our differences with others on the playground, in the classroom, or in our everyday experiences. Kids will love the silly comparisons and realistic conversations that naturally happen after reading.
October 28, 2022
Adobe Photoshop illustrations complement a unique perspective on the commonalities among humans in this picture book. Through the voice of a thoughtful youngster, the text and images ponder what various objects and animals have in common with humans before concluding that humans have so much in common with one another that it should be easy for them to get along. The comparisons start with the highly-unlikely such as a tin can accompanied by an illustration showing the child's head opened up just like is necessary with a can. Clearly, the two have nothing in common. And then, the text wonders about what a human and other things such as a swimming pool, a mushroom, and a hyena might have in common. All of this reflection is accomplished with dollops of wry observation and humor, and by the time the final page has been reached, the book's message is clear. While it's important to celebrate what makes humans different from each other, it is also helpful to keep in mind their similarities. This picture book would be a great conversation-starter in a classroom or in a thematic unit devoted to cultures. The absurd comparisons and contrasts will surely evoke giggles.
November 7, 2022
This delightful read aloud will have your preschooler, kindergartener or first grader hooting with laughter as they hear the narrator’s many comparisons between a human and a series of outlandish things like swimming pools, tin cans, mushrooms and hyenas. Each is more like a human than the last one, but not exactly. So what are humans like? Other humans! We’re much more like each other than swimming pools or mushrooms, even if we are very different. Even if we speak different languages and like different foods, look different, have different abilities and are different ages, we are alike. The next to last page of the book offers a perfect opportunity for a class to ponder the ways people are different, yet still alike.
This is a book that deserves to find a home in every preschool and early elementary classroom library.
This is a book that deserves to find a home in every preschool and early elementary classroom library.
August 22, 2023
The smiling narrator of this thought-provoking picture book is a kid who argues that we humans are different from most things on earth. He compares people with a tin can, a swimming pool, a mushroom, an excavator, and a hyena. For each, he lists the ways in which people are like it and unlike it.
Then he points at the reader: "Hey! It's me! And there's you! Look at us! Are we alike?" He ends up concluding that while there are differences, we have a lot in common: "Even if you speak a language I don't speak, you are more like me than a hyena." Furthermore, all humans are more like us than they are different. (This is a much-needed sense of perspective!)
On the last page, the kid concludes: "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth. I'm glad. I'd rather be like you than like a mushroom." That's a memorable formulation.
Then he points at the reader: "Hey! It's me! And there's you! Look at us! Are we alike?" He ends up concluding that while there are differences, we have a lot in common: "Even if you speak a language I don't speak, you are more like me than a hyena." Furthermore, all humans are more like us than they are different. (This is a much-needed sense of perspective!)
On the last page, the kid concludes: "I am more like you than I am like most of the things on Earth. I'm glad. I'd rather be like you than like a mushroom." That's a memorable formulation.
July 8, 2023
Right away I find something to LIKE about this book. The dedication reads:
To everyone who's wondered if there's someone like them.
As I read further, the fresh writing by Annie Barrows reminds me of giftwrap: Beautiful giftwrap around an even fresher perspective.
Comparing similar and different is a worthy way to gain bigger perspective. For instance, here's Annie's perspective on hyenas:
Hyenas have brains, like we do.
They run around really fast, like we do.
They make loud noises, like we do.
But hyenas don't say words. They don't tell stories.
They don't get embarrassed, even when they're caught
eating something off the ground.
IN CONCLUSION
FIVE STARS to author Annie Barrows and also to illustrator Leo Espinosa.
To everyone who's wondered if there's someone like them.
As I read further, the fresh writing by Annie Barrows reminds me of giftwrap: Beautiful giftwrap around an even fresher perspective.
Comparing similar and different is a worthy way to gain bigger perspective. For instance, here's Annie's perspective on hyenas:
Hyenas have brains, like we do.
They run around really fast, like we do.
They make loud noises, like we do.
But hyenas don't say words. They don't tell stories.
They don't get embarrassed, even when they're caught
eating something off the ground.
IN CONCLUSION
FIVE STARS to author Annie Barrows and also to illustrator Leo Espinosa.
December 30, 2022
There are a great many books out today that look at inclusion from different ways and draw attention to the similarities between kids instead of the differences. This book takes that idea with a fun twist and a different perspective. The child narrating "Like" shares how he is similar to a tin can, a mushroom, and other objects and then turns around and says that we are more alike than any of the previous comparisons. I will admit, I read this book 3 times before it finally all sunk in how really smart this method was. I'm impressed and will definitely recommend this book in a variety of classes.
March 7, 2023
A child observes how a variety of things around him are similar and dissimilar to himself, concluding that although there are many different human beings, we are more like each other than we are like anything else. LIKE uses cute, childlike logic to make observations about the world and the human community.
It did bother me a little to see a sentient being (a hyena) included with a variety of inanimate objects and non-sentient forms of life. However, it did acknowledge that hyenas have brains and do some of the same things we do, so at least the text wasn't entirely grouping animals in with vehicles or swimming pools.
It did bother me a little to see a sentient being (a hyena) included with a variety of inanimate objects and non-sentient forms of life. However, it did acknowledge that hyenas have brains and do some of the same things we do, so at least the text wasn't entirely grouping animals in with vehicles or swimming pools.
October 3, 2024
Like written by Annie Barrows and illustrated by Leo Espinosa, is a fun and engaging picture book about how we are alike and different from a variety of things. Barrow’s clever comparisons, along with some contrasts, will have kids giggling and really get them thinking. Espinosa’s award-winning artwork is bright and colorful. The illustrations are eye-catching and interesting. Be sure to peek at the case cover under the jacket. Like is a great read aloud when you want to get readers thinking about how things are alike and different. It’s also perfect for any time you want a fun and thought provoking story time.
August 18, 2022
Annie Barrows (Ivy and Bean series) and Leo Espinosa give preschool a great picture book that clearly illustrates that humans are more alike than we are different. And people certainly have more in common with each other than we do with things like mushrooms, tin cans, swimming pools and hyenas! Illustrations, while realistic, are bold and bright and will certainly appeal to PK-2nd grade readers. Great message presented simply and with clear compare/contrast details, making it also a mentor text for lessons on same/different.
Thanks for sending me a preview copy, Chronicle Kids!
Thanks for sending me a preview copy, Chronicle Kids!
February 12, 2023
I came here for the art, which is a delight. (That hyena smiling! Yes.)
(I found myself wishing the pages were matte and not shiny. Not sure why.)
But the thing is, I never thought humans were the same as swimming pools. And I don't really think you thought I did. I think you wanted to tell me to be kind to other humans because we're the same species. ? If so, okay, although, eh.
The mushrooms wish you'd not spent the whole book going on about difference and land with them at the butt of it.
(I found myself wishing the pages were matte and not shiny. Not sure why.)
But the thing is, I never thought humans were the same as swimming pools. And I don't really think you thought I did. I think you wanted to tell me to be kind to other humans because we're the same species. ? If so, okay, although, eh.
The mushrooms wish you'd not spent the whole book going on about difference and land with them at the butt of it.
November 26, 2022
A child points out how humans are alike one another, more so than tin cans, swimming pools, or excavators. The funny first 2/3 leads to the important message in the last 1/3. We all get embarrassed. We all have brains with thoughts. Despite our differences, we are more alike than anything else on this planet. This would be a great classroom read aloud, especially at the beginning of the year. I wish it wasn't as preachy on the message, but it does help get the point across to younger readers.
January 27, 2023
Quirky and fun pb that will get readers looking at themselves and others in a different way. The compare and contrast scenarios show commonalities between people and objects - have you ever considered how alike you and a mushroom are? Love this outside the box thinking and perspective, and the reminder that no matter how different another person may seem, there are ways in which you will be alike.
September 26, 2022
Are we like a swimming pool? A mushroom? A hyena? Are we like each other?
This picture book explores what makes us alike and different from various things, ultimately ending on how humans are alike. I get what this story was going for, but not sure if it gets there or packs the punch it wanted to.
This picture book explores what makes us alike and different from various things, ultimately ending on how humans are alike. I get what this story was going for, but not sure if it gets there or packs the punch it wanted to.
December 26, 2022
Simply and brilliantly illustrated by Leo Espinosa, this is a book about humans, the things they are not like, and the things they are like (including each other). Intriguing choices by the author, a generous dash of silliness, and one puzzling spread. (Did they run out of room for a connection spread about the hyena? Or perhaps there was too much hyena for one book?) Regardless, a page turner.
May 11, 2023
I am frankly shocked that this book doesn't have higher reviews. Maybe it's because I am in the throws of a college intro to biology class, but I am delighted by it. Because...it's a FANTASTIC intro to biology! But that's not all. There are little bits of inclusion and self love tied into the text as well.
Read
June 13, 2023I think this would be a great beginning of the school year book. Show that we are all more like each other than we are to other things, talk about differences and similarities, talk about the science behind the human body/brain and the science of how other things are made. Lots of stuff to talk about.
August 14, 2023
This concept story features adorable illustrations of a like-able little kid, but it wanders through confusing comparisons and contrasts among human beings and a variety of animate and inanimate things as he tries to explain why humans are more alike than they appear. That said, the boy’s declaration “I’d rather be like you than like a mushroom” isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of diversity.
November 26, 2022
While I really appreciate the message (reaffirming the humanity of others despite our differences), the text was a little jarring at times and ended up distracting my kids from the message as they were more interested in the raspberry jello with banana and the hyena attempting to come inside.
March 4, 2023
A clever way to show some STEM concepts, compare-and-contrast skills, and provide a nice message about how we're all more alike than different, with a "why can't we all just get along" undercurrent. The text is a bit heavy and the thread a little hard to follow sometimes, but a nice book overall.
April 22, 2023
This is actually pretty cute. I wasn't sure at the beginning if I would like it. I think this could be a great book for first-graders toward the beginning of the school year to talk about what things we have in common with each other.
Story: 4
Illustrations: 4
Read-aloud: 4
Story: 4
Illustrations: 4
Read-aloud: 4
May 13, 2023
COME di Leo Espinosa e Annie Barrow. Un albo illustrato divertente per scoprire quanto ci assomigliamo anche se siamo tutti diversi ognuno con le proprie caratteristiche. Da 4 anni <3 https://ilmondodichri.com/come/
#come #rizzoli #alboillustrato
#come #rizzoli #alboillustrato
June 4, 2023
I read this book as an adult reader for the AR Diamond Book Award. I'd give it a solid 2.5/5 stars. I get what the author was going for, but it didn't seem to quite pack the punch she was intending.
November 29, 2023
People are more alike than different, especially when compared to tin cans, swimming pools, mushrooms, excavators, and hyenas. A thought-provoking way to think about our lives on Earth and how connected we are.
February 14, 2024
Annie Barrows is a wonder! With all the different types of books she has written, this one caught me by surprise. The crazy compare-and-contrasts that she has chosen will make you laugh as well as pause to think. “Thought-provoking” was my reaction to her take on a comparing a human with a tin can!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews