Children’s Review: Two Tales of Twenty-Six

When Canadian author Stephanie Simpson McLelland– who you may recognize from the terrific The Sorry Life of Timothy Shmoe (with Zoe Si)– reached out with news about her latest children’s book, I was in. While I am unfortunately (and very apologetically) very late in bringing this review out, I do hope readers take the time to seek out Two Tales of Twenty-Six written by Simpson McLelland and illustrated by Canadian artist Mike Deas!

Book Description:

Parallel adventures unfold in this unique book that holds two stories in one! Meet Walter the mouse, who conquers the twenty-six cats that stand between him and the outside world, and – when readers turn the book upside down and back-to-front – meet Liam the boy who conquers the twenty-six letters of the alphabet so he can read Walter’s tale. When these two stories meet in the middle with Walter outsmarting the cats, and Liam learning to read, the two protagonists enter each other’s world.

Presented in a delightfully appealing and unique “flip-the-book” style, Two Tales of Twenty-Six takes readers on two big reading adventures that perfectly meet in the middle. In “Walter and the World”, a wee mouse named Walter wants nothing more than to leave the inside world- one that contains twenty six cats surrounding his premises!-and break free to the sunshine-filled outdoor world of possibilities. As Walter plans, reassesses and formulates just how to successfully take on the twenty-six biggest and furriest challenge set before him, readers may worry for a moment how one small mouse- even one as clever and determined as Walter- might make his way to the outside.

On the flip side, we have “Liam and the Letters”, featuring a young child named Liam whose enemy list is currently sitting at twenty-six: twenty-six letters to be exact. Liam has his eye on one particular book he spots in the library: one featuring a mouse and a number of cats…but the whys and the hows, and the details of the story are not coming together just yet. Frustrated that he is not yet able to make sense of the letters in the story, Liam has a real tussle with the book that ends with it lying in the snow! Thankfully, Liam rescues the book from the cold, and decides he might need to take a different approach: one in which he does not try to take on twenty-six letters at once, but perhaps try taking on one letter at a time. Sharing great determination and breaking down what seem to be impossibly daunting tasks, both Walter’s and Liam’s stories provide readers with a terrific sense of encouragement and accomplishment.

Two Tales of Twenty-Six presents readers a lovely sense of rhythm, with, and easy movement in its storytelling, with McLelland using repetition and emphasis of particular phrases, as well as rhyme, to great effect. Illustrator Mike Deas (who you might recognize as the illustrator behind the Scholastic Canada Biography series and the Sueño Bay Adventures with Nancy Deas), is a terrific artistic fit here; matching the adorably humourous and gently romp-ish feel of the characters and their stories, proffering expressive and a lightly sketched yet fully realized details. With its combination of strong storytelling and fantastic artwork, Two Tales of Twenty-Six is a solid reading pick- and the promise of Walter’s and Liam’s stories meeting in the middle is icing on top of an already deliciously sweet and heartwarming reading adventure.

I received a digital copy of this title courtesy of Stephanie Simpson McLelland in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and comments are my own. Title has been published and is currently available.