A tender story of understanding and accepting a grandparent’s aging process.
In this thoughtful picture book, a Jamaican child begins to understand that her grandmother is showing signs of Alzheimer’s.
Amancia loves her grandmother, who lives next door. One day, she picks a star apple just for Grandma, and she leaves it on the table while Grandma naps, her Bible on her chest. Later, when Amancia asks if she liked the star apple, Grandma says she never received it. At church, Amancia notices that Grandma knows all the words to every hymn, but she looks tired in the heat. When Grandma forgets her Bible, something she never does, Amancia grabs it for her. The girl grows worried, and things grow even more confusing when Grandma loses her Bible at home, becoming distressed and confused. Eventually Amancia’s mother takes Grandma to the doctor, who diagnoses the elderly woman with Alzheimer’s disease. Her mother explains to Amancia that this means Grandma might forget things, but she needs their love more than ever, and while some things will change—they’ll take the bus to church instead of walking—they’ll try to keep the most important things the same to help Grandma. Gerdner and Witter, both health professionals involved with Alzheimer’s advocacy, provide a quiet glimpse into family life, depicting a Jamaican family as they skillfully navigate a challenging time with love. The relationship between Amancia and Grandma blooms with affection, and their shared joy in seeing nature around them or savoring a family meal shines through. Some of the vocabulary may feel clinical or challenge young readers; for example, Mother tells Amancia, “We are going to continue to evaluate her ability to live alone.” But despite the sometimes lengthy text, the messages of support and caring—and that Grandma’s loss of memory doesn’t mean she loves Amancia any less—are clear. Jones’ beautiful watercolor illustrations bring the Jamaican setting to life, and some images, such as Grandma holding her Bible in her wrinkled hands, seem as though you could reach in and touch them.
A tender story of understanding and accepting a grandparent’s aging process.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9780998686479
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Pizzicato Press
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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