Mia and Molly: The Same and Different

Mylo Freeman was born in The Hague, Holland from Dutch/American parents. She attended art school for about five years (painting) and after that, she moved to New York. She lived and worked there for a couple of years and was part of a group exhibition at The Drawing Center Gallery in New York. But eventually, homesickness brought her back to Amsterdam. Around this time she started her musical career, which resulted in a CD. However, the stage did not prove to be artistically satisfying, so she returned to the visual arts. This time Mylo started working for magazines and commercial advertising. After the birth of her son David (1994), she started to make drawings for children and he became the big inspiration for all the books to come. The first published book was Potty! in 1997. It, in turn, inspired David to give up his diapers and use the potty! This book also won her the Kiekebookprize in 1998, a prize given out by Dutch national libraries for best toddler book of the year. Now, Mylo has published over 60 books. When she was a kid there was nothing she enjoyed more than turning her room into a big playground for all her dolls and cuddly toys. So you can imagine that creating a character like Zaza came naturally. Now Zaza has become her favorite character and is loved by toddlers around the world! At the moment Mylo lives in Amsterdam with her husband and three children.

"A flip book introduces two Asian siblings, twin toddlers who observe ways they are similar and ways they are not. “Look—Mia and Molly are twins. They look the same.” This half of the book goes on to highlight ways that the twins are similar, focusing on shared preferences in objects and dress. “Today Mia and Molly are wearing the same clothes and the same shoes.” Fortunately for the sisters, the illustrations reveal that there are two of everything, avoiding any source of contention. Bright contrasting colors and textures add dynamism to the illustrations along with artful placement of patterns to surround text or give a pop to objects. Conflict does arise when Mia and Molly fight over one beloved toy frog. Luckily Mommy has a solution. At this point, readers flip the book over and begin reading from the back cover to delve into the differences between the two. Some instances are fairly superficial while others reveal personality distinctions: “Mia loves to laugh at silly puppets. Molly thinks they are a little bit scary.” (…) A colorful tale of twins who are not always identical. (Picture book. 2-4)" - Kirkus Reviews"This story is about twins who share a lot of similarities and differences. I love the visuals of this story and enjoy how these two sisters are described as having their own interests despite looking so much alike. This shows children from a young age that there are many things that make us unique but also unite us. Cute story! Perfect for those young, forming minds." - Pleasanton ISD"A sweet story, beautifully-illustrated. Two little girls, Mia and Molly, are twins. The first part of the book is about what they have in common. The second part of the book features their different interest and ilkes. For twins, the siblings of twins, and all little girls who like adorable picture books. Five stars." - Biblio Filer"This book was really cute and great for kids! I love that it has 2 books in one. The first being how they are the same and the other how they are different. I think that it can portray an important message on how people are both the same and different too. I also love the illustrations. They're colorful and cute." - Alexisse Pablico