Book Review: I could be, You could be

Title: I could be, You could be

By: Karen Owen and Barroux

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What's it about? 

Explore the world of imagination within the pages of this fun, simple rhyming book from royalty and dragons to wild animals and aliens, this pick is designed to spark imagination and creative, cooperative play. 

Who Thought What? 

Tonight I read this imaginative story with my husband. I had heard great things about this book from others, so was excited to experience it for myself. This story is simple and short, perfect for pre-readers and even some new readers! Even my 10 month old daughter enjoys story time when we read this book! It's because of this that I wish I could be, You could be was a board book! When I first read this book, I wasn't sure I was going to like the format but in the end I loved the way most ideas were presented in a "I can be this and you can be that sort of way! I felt like this format organically encouraged cooperative play without the need to loose individual choices, though I was (as well as my husband) a little disappointed when the final "I could be," is not followed by a "You could be" statement. My favorite part, however was the last two pages of the story as it ends with "But the best thing I could be...is me!"! I absolutely adored this positive message! 

My husband and I also really enjoyed the art work! They are fun, silly and do a great job of depicting the world that the narrator is imagining.  While he agreed that his least favorite part was that the last "I could be" was not followed by the expected "You could be", we did not share the same favorite parts. His favorite parts were centered more around the illustrations then mine, naming his favorite part the page where the narrator is a parakeet, though he also mentioned greatly enjoying the alien costume depicted later in the book as well! 

I also enjoyed the change in fonts, putting emphasis on each new thing to imagine in a fun and reflective way, making those words stand out. This encourages readers to recognize these words, which they may guess from the pictures, and encourages them to participate in the reading! It also helps find and identify the repetitive phrases such as "I can be" and "You can be"! 

And while I came at my analysis from a more educational angle, by husband formed his analysis as someone experiencing the story for the first time! He loved the rhyming rhythm that runs throughout the entire store, smiling as each line ended with just the right rhyming word!

What would We Rank it? 

My husband happily ranks this book at....

5/5 cheeky monkeys 

While I adore this book, I rank it as....

4/5 cheeky monkeys

Now you know what we thought, tell us what you thought! Let us know in the comments what you loved, or hated, about "I could be, you could be" and don't forget to let us know how many cheeky monkeys you give it!