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A Special Gift for Grammy
Author:
George, Jean Craighead
Illustrator:
Johnson, Steve
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Class:
Easy
Age: 3-8
Language: English
Descriptors: Picture Book
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LC: PZ7
Grade: P-3
Print Run: 30000
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ISBN-13: 9780060531768
LCCN: 2011030450
Imprint: HarperCollins
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Pub Date: 04/23/2013
Availability: Out of Stock Indefinitely
List: $17.99
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Hardcover
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Physical Description:
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1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 25 x 27 cm.
H 9.25",
W 10",
0.87 lbs.
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LC Series:
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Brodart Sources:
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Brodart's For Youth Interest: Popular
Brodart's Fresh Reads for Kids TIPS Selections
Brodart's Insight Catalog: Children
Brodart's TOP Juvenile Titles
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Bibliographies:
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Awards:
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Horn Book Guide Titles, Rated 1 - 4
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Starred Reviews:
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TIPS Subjects:
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Family Life
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BISAC Subjects: |
JUVENILE FICTION / Family / Multigenerational
JUVENILE FICTION / Science & Nature / Environment
JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
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LC Subjects:
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Grandmothers, Fiction
Rocks, Fiction
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SEARS Subjects: |
Grandmothers, Fiction
Rocks, Fiction
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Reading Programs: |
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| Annotations |
| Brodart's TOP Juvenile Titles | 05/01/2013 |
| These aren't your ordinary stones. Hunter's imagination leads him to the perfect gift for Grammy in a tale that celebrates imagination and reveals just how special a stack of stones can be. 32pp., Color Ill. |
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| Journal Reviews |
| Booklist | 05/01/2013 |
| Preschool-Grade 2. While visiting his grandmother, Hunter picks up stones and makes a pile of them on Grammy's porch. She wonders what she'll do with them, but little by little the stones come in handy. The mail carrier uses them to keep her letter from blowing away, while a neighbor takes a couple to leave on her pets' graves. A carpenter makes a plumb line with one, and another becomes a hammer for a gardener's stake. With help from a stonecutter's drill, Grammy turns the last stones into a necklace. Made with collage, pencil, and acrylic elements, the mixed-media artwork is subtly textured and filled with warm, autumn colors. Although the book's central concept is a pleasant one, and the story unfolds in a natural-sounding way, the setting of this quiet picture book seems more vividly realized than the characters. Recommended for larger collections. Phelan, Carolyn. 32p. Booklist Online. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013. |
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| Horn Book Guide | 11/01/2013 |
| 3. Hunter collects a pile of stones--a gift for Grammy. "What do I do with a pile of stones?" she wonders. Over the next few days, everyone who visits Grammy has a use for them: paperweight, directional signal, necklace, skipping stone. Warm acrylic, pencil, and collage illustrations reflect Hunter and Grammy's loving relationship and enhance this sweet story. pr. 32pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2013. |
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| Kirkus Reviews | 04/01/2013 |
| A bond built on love, understanding and trust between a grandmother and her grandson proves pleasantly surprising for all involved. As the time approaches to say goodbye after a visit to Grammy, Hunter leaves a small stone pile on his grandmother's front porch. When she asks him what she's to do with it, he answers, "What everyone does with a pile of stones." She responds wisely, "Of course." A few days pass, and then various people in the community utilize a stone or two for a wide range of purposes. The mail carrier puts one on a pile of letters so they do not blow away, a neighbor marks her pets' graves with a couple, a girl stacks them as a directional signal, the carpenter fashions a plumb line with one, a gardener improvises and uses one as a hammer, while a boy puts a few near the tires of his wagon "to keep it from rolling downhill." Johnson and Fancher combine acrylic, pencil and collage to create finely textured spreads that zoom out to show the bigger picture of how one small act of leaving some stones can end up having a significant impact. When Hunter returns, only six stones are left. How these last several are used will engage readers curious and creative alike. Unexpected gifts for both Grammy and Hunter are the results from George's satisfying ending; the book is ideal for prompting discussions about ripple effects and the power of imagination. (Picture book. 5-8). 32pg. KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013. |
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| Publishers Weekly | 03/25/2013 |
| Ages 4-8. When Hunter's grandmother asks him what she should do with the heap of stones he leaves on her porch, he replies, "What everyone does with a pile of stones." Her answer, "Of course," is in keeping with this gentle story's simplicity and insight. One by one, visitors find uses for the stones: the mail carrier secures a stack of letters, a neighbor decorates her pets' graves, the gardener hammers a stake, and a boy keeps his wagon from rolling downhill. Finally only six small stones remain--each shaped like something important to Hunter--and he and Grammy turn them into a treasured present for her. One of the late George's (The Buffalo Are Back) final works, the book gracefully celebrates the beauty and practicality of such innocuous natural objects as stones, as well as an intergenerational relationship based on mutual respect and understanding. Johnson and Fancher's (One Frozen Lake) gauzy collage, acrylic, and pencil art fleshes out both the natural and human arcs of the story, subtly incorporating a stone motif into backgrounds, displaying brilliant fall foliage, and accentuating the bond between Hunter and Grammy. (May). 32p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013. |
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| School Library Journal | 04/01/2013 |
| K-Gr 2. Hunter gathers a pile of stones on his grandmother's front porch. When she and his father ask him what one does with them, he enigmatically answers, "What everyone does with a pile of stones." The mail carrier takes one to keep letters from blowing away. A child uses some to keep his wagon from rolling down the hill. A Brownie places three of them on the sidewalk to indicate to her friends where they should turn right. When Hunter returns, there are only six stones left. He and Grammy take five to the stonecutter, who drills holes in them; now Grammy has a stone necklace. What to do with the one remaining stone? Skip it across the lake, of course. While the story demonstrates a close relationship between a grandmother and her grandson, it comes across as sentimental and precious. It also seems odd that the whole neighborhood takes the rocks off Grammy's porch, rather than from the yard or elsewhere (and that the modern-day neighborhood has a stonecutter). On the plus side, the text reads aloud well. The collage, acrylic, and pencil illustrations are warm and lovely; the lace pattern that comes through gives the art texture and depth. Libraries are likely to want to own this as it is one of the last books George authored before her recent passing, but it is by no means a must-have. Laura Lutz, Pratt Institute, New York City. 32p. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013. |
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9780060531768,dl.it[0].title
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