Nearly Exactly Almost Like Me

Nearly Exactly Almost Like Me is about a big brother who is making a case to show why his adopted little brother is just like him because of a kid on the playground questioning their physical differences. This book opens up with the two brothers racing to get in line for the ice cream truck, the big brother reaches the line first so he holds a spot in line. The little brother catches up to join his brother, but another kid gets mad at the cutting and doesn’t believe the two are brothers when they don’t look like each other.

What I Liked: This book is cute and fun right from the start when you see the children all playing on the playground and then going to their mother to ask for ice cream money. The rest of the book continues similarly with light-hearted moments in which the big brother shares how his little brother likes candy, and swimming, but not baths just like him. The older brother shows how he understands that outside differences don’t matter because in his heart and mind his little brother is just like him.

The illustrations are soft with not much line art as the colors blend. The children that are included throughout the book are all of various shades, and genders, and are wearing a variety of clothing. The various images show the different ways that the kids are similar and the ways that the parents show their love for their children.

Final Verdict: Nearly Exactly Almost Like Me is a heartwarming book about two siblings where the older brother is trying to show the various ways in which his brother is just like him even if they aren’t biologically related. This book is great for children who have different family structures to show them that other families are just like theirs.