The Two and Only Kelly Twins

by Johanna Hurwitz, Tuesday Mourning (Illustrator)

Overview

“No matter the predicament, Hurwitz interjects both humor and warmth. Accompanied by illustrations as playful as Arlene and Ilene, this chapter book is a t-winning choice.” — Kirkus Reviews

Second-graders Arlene and Ilene Kelly are twins — identical twins to be exact — and they love being a pair. But being a twin is not always easy. When a set of triplets comes to school, Arlene and Ilene wonder whether triplets are more special than twins. And when Arlene gets sick and has to visit the hospital, the twins each find out what it’s like to be one instead of two. But whether they’re together or apart, Arlene and Ilene know they’re lucky to have each other.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781536200508
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	05/08/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.29(d)
Lexile:	600L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 9 Years

About the Author

 

Editorial Reviews

No matter the predicament, Hurwitz interjects both humor and warmth. Accompanied by illustrations as playful as Arlene and Ilene, this chapter book is a t-winning choice for transitional readers who have graduated from Grace Lin’s Ling & Ting early readers and enjoyed Hurwitz’s previous titles.
—Kirkus Reviews

[A] a natural step up from Grace Lin’s Ling & Ting books.
—Publishers Weekly

Hurwitz is remarkably gifted at composing kidspecific narratives with ease and grace, and the chapters read more like short stories than successive components of a novel. Warmth and humor pervade the stories, which simply written and yet subtle in their presentation of the girls’ experiences.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

With spot art every few pages, the story should appeal to early chapter-book readers. The sisters are mischievous, but loving, and young readers won’t have any trouble keeping up with their escapades.
—School Library Journal

With Mourning’s whimsical, pencil drawings and Hurwitz’s short chapters, this book will offer young readers an opportunity to delve into reading novels. It’s a sweet and touching tale of siblings and their relationship with each other.
—Library Media Connection

From the Publisher

Hurwitz launches a chapter-book series about identical twins Arlene and Ilene Kelly, friends of the star of Mostly Monty and its sequels. “Arlene and Ilene knew that being a twin was very special, and they considered themselves lucky,” writes Hurwitz, though the girls’ sparring and antics temper any sugariness. They argue about whether to get a puppy or kitten; their father settles the dispute by bringing home two ferrets, which—in a fun dab of irony—the twins can’t tell apart. On Halloween, there’s a minor altercation when both girls want to be witches (“I said it first,” “I said it loudest”). And the twins’ sense of uniqueness is threatened when triplets—whose last name is Best, no less—join second grade; Ilene announces that she and Arlene are also triplets, requiring a flurry of lies (or “jokes” as the girls frame it). Mourning (the Kylie Jean series) pictures the girls with matching red eyeglasses, pigtails, and outfits in watercolor illustrations that add extra punch to a story that’s a natural step up from Grace Lin’s Ling & Ting books. Ages 6–9. Illustrator’s agent: Shannon Associates. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

2013-08-15
In this Monty spinoff, Hurwitz once again writes about childhood milestones--but this time with twins. Arlene and Ilene Kelly are 7-year-old identical twins with the same straight brown hair, the same style glasses and usually even the same outfit. In six short, episodic chapters that combine into a larger narrative, the second-graders face the ups and downs of being twins. The first chapter introduces the sisters, who, though born only eight minutes apart, have birthdays on separate days. Readers learn how their parents (though not most other people) tell them apart and how they play with neighbor Monty (featured in several books by the author). Subsequent stories describe how the sisters end up with the perfect pets though they can't decide between a cat or a dog; wonder if being twins is less special than being triplets; and deal with a Halloween mix-up. The final story realistically recognizes the girls' anxiety when Arlene, à la Madeline, awakes in the night with appendicitis, and the sisters are forced to spend time apart. The experience affirms both their growing independence and unyielding friendship. No matter the predicament, Hurwitz interjects both humor and warmth. Accompanied by illustrations as playful as Arlene and Ilene, this chapter book is a t-winning choice for transitional readers who have graduated from Grace Lin's Ling & Ting early readers and enjoyed Hurwitz's previous titles. (Fiction. 6-9)

Kirkus Reviews