Twenty Questions by Mac Barnett

I'm so grateful for friends who tell me I need a book. Thanks to Mary Lee Hahn, I purchased Twenty Questions by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Christian Robinson without even seeing it in person. Mary Lee knew I needed this book and I tried it out right away on two of my young adults on an ice cream date.

The first page sets readers up for success with a very concrete, right there question. Readers are asked to count the number of animals on the page. The girls looked at me with a puzzled look and I felt a hesitation with a quiet so....... shared.

Then the second page spread completely changes the readers thinking with an open ended question. "Which of these ladies just robbed a bank?" We each picked a different lady and could justify why we picked her. The justifications were varied and believable. 

The book continues in this format; a two page spread illustration and a question to ponder. As we stood in line waiting for ice cream we kept reading through the pages and discussing our answers. Some of them were realistic and some were not. Even if the justification wasn't realistic it could be possible with we used our imagination and asked why not.

This book has entry points for all readers. It sparks inquiry and conversation. It invites multiple perspectives and accepting different ideas than your own. I can't wait to use it this coming school year. It's a book you can start and then revisit one two page spread at a time. It's a book to start and revisit during the year because we grow as thinkers.