Pistes d'exploration

Before going on a book walk, discuss the title and possible storylines. Which country is typically referred to as the land down under? Locate Australia on a map. Identify countries above and below the equator. 

Why do you think there’s a line through most of the illustrations as well as on the front and back covers? Discuss what the continuity of this line could represent. What happens when the line disappears?

Why is it important to learn about other cultures? In pairs, choose a country from below the equator and compare it to ours (climate, seasons, attire, etc.). Use a Venn diagram to display the information.

Do a picture walk through the book, looking for similarities and differences.

Discuss the strong message that can be conveyed by these simple sentences. 

In the style of the illustrations, make a poster that compares two similar realities such as two different sports teams, or people in spring and fall. Write a sentence to add to your poster.

Waterloo & Trafalgar, Apples & Oranges : Going Bananas With Pairs

Mots-clés

Picture book , differences , diversity , geography , multiculturalism , perceptions , point of view

Commentaire descriptif

There are two kinds of people in the world: “Some live up above Northern Hemisphere and some live down below Southern Hemisphere.” Both groups think they are different from each other, despite evidence to the contrary. Readers will get a kick out of this clever exploration of common and universal experiences. Simple text in large font complements double-page spreads of stylized illustrations, many of which mirror each other. Quirky illustrations are grouped around a horizontal line drawn across the middle of each page. Oddball, angular people (e.g. a two-headed woman in a bikini) and animals are pictured standing on the line, with the “up above” group drawn right-side up and the “down below” ones, upside-down. Readers will want to turn the book around more than once to compare images. End papers provide context, offering maps of the world, also from two perspectives. This multiple concept book invites exploration of geography, diversity, equality and opposites. Through humour and a literal change in perspective, it also shows readers how the world’s people are much more alike than different.