Mel & Mo’s Marvelous Balancing Act

Mel and Mo are twins who look the same but have very different tastes. As they grow older, their differences push them apart, but when Theodora Tweedle's Spectacular Raincoats and Roller Skates rolls into town, threatening both their livelihoods, Mel and Mo decide that together they both have exactly what they need to flourish. The message of cooperation and acceptance is slightly heavy-handed but not intolerably so; the narrative runs smoothly along its well-worn grooves. This is a familiar story, a comfortable story, one that ends on the expected note of gentle harmony. There is even a collaboration with Theodora Tweedle as the last act has the performers on roller skates holding umbrellas made by Mel as they zip across the high wire. The nonthreatening and reassuring quality of this story makes it a good one to start off a discussion of preferences, differences and cooperation in a family or classroom setting.

The soft-coloured nostalgic illustrations match the story by always putting Mel on the left-hand page, Mo on the right, so their activities will mirror each other's, and there are details such as the growing family of poodles or the recurring bicycle that will charm the observant reader. Mel speaks in pink text, Mo in green, and, when they are children, the two look exactly the same, dressing in green sweaters and beige shorts with white knee-high socks. While there is no mention of their biological sex or performed gender, Mel displays the traits that are traditionally associated with girls or valued in girls: likes pink, classical music (sheet music and a piano), cats, staying indoors, and takes over their parents' shop and is steady. Mo owns the boyish traits: likes green, going outdoors, dogs, louder music or pop music (the illustration shows a microphone and some speakers), and (being more adventurous) runs away to join the circus.