Grandpa Green [Hardcover]

Lane Smith (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: August 30, 2011 | Age Range: 5 - 9 years | Lexile Measure: 360L (What's this?)

Grandpa Green wasn't always a gardener. He was a boy who lived on a farm and a child who had chickenpox. He was a soldier, a husband and, most of all, an artist. Follow his grandson through a garden where memories are handed down through the shapes of topiary trees and imagination recreates things forgotten. GRANDPA GREEN opens the door to a garden of wonder which parents and grandparents will be able to share with children for generations to come.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Product Description

From the creator of the national bestseller It's a Book comes a timeless story of family history, legacy, and love.

 

Grandpa Green wasn't always a gardener. He was a farmboy and a kid with chickenpox and a soldier and, most of all, an artist. In this captivating new picture book, readers follow Grandpa Green's great-grandson into a garden he created, a fantastic world where memories are handed down in the fanciful shapes of topiary trees and imagination recreates things forgotten.

 

In his most enigmatic and beautiful work to date, Lane Smith explores aging, memory, and the bonds of family history and love; by turns touching and whimsical, it's a stunning picture book that parents and grandparents will be sharing with children for years to come.

---

A Look Inside Grandpa Green
(Click on Images to Enlarge)

Review

“In this affecting picture book, a boy recounts the life of his beloved great-grandfather…The author’s illustrations, a blend of line drawings and sponge painting, have a classic feel, and make clever use of the topiary theme, rewarding close examination and repeated reading.”--The New Yorker

 

“Great-grandpa’s memory may be going, but the past remains vibrantly alive in the playful topiaries that decorate his brilliantly green yard. Lush and magical.” --People

 

"An unassuming little masterpiece…the book’s power lies in its rich, allusive artistry.” --New York Times Book Review

 

“It's a rare glimpse into Smith's softer side--as skillful as his more sly offerings, but crafted with honesty and heart.” --Publishers Weekly Starred Review

 

"Visually intriguing and emotionally resonant, this is a book to pore over and talk about. With each subsequent reading, it offers new layers of meaning and visual connections."–School Library Journal Starred Review

“Opening this book is like opening a gate to a secret garden, filled with the treasures of a life well lived. In his portrait of a boy who adores and honors his forgetful great-grandfather, Smith shows us that the things that are meaningful to the ones we love become part of our garden, too.” —Shelf Awareness

“Though this book has lots of adult appeal, it will also be a wonderful bridge to exploring family history with the very young.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Sketched with a finely lined fairy-tale wispiness and dominated by verdant green, the illustrations are not just creative but poignant.” —Booklist

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 5 - 9 years
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Roaring Brook Press; First Edition edition (August 30, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596436077
• ISBN-13: 978-1596436077
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 11.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #60,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lane Smith is the author and/or illustrator of several award-winning books for children. He is a two-time winner of the Caldecott Honor for Grandpa Green (2012) and The Stinky Cheese Man (1993). Four of his books have won the New York Times Best Illustrated Book Award and several of his books, including It's a Book, John, Paul George & Ben and Madam President have been New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestsellers. Mr. Smith has illustrated works by the likes of Bob Shea, Roald Dahl, Dr. Seuss, George Saunders, Judith Viorst, Florence Parry Heide, Jack Prelutsky and Eve Merriam. Some of his most popular books are with frequent collaborator, Jon Scieszka. Mr. Smith lives in Connecticut with his wife Molly Leach, an award-winning graphic designer.
www.lanesmithbooks.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A layered tale of loves lost and found and lost again but forever remembered August 3, 2011

By Jason Kirkfield VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Lane Smith wrote and illustrated this cycle-of-life story. (His wife, Molly Leach, did the book design.) The book's own ten-word summary says it all: "A child explores the ordinary life of his extraordinary great-grandfather." If you allow me to indulge, I will gladly add my own slightly-longer-than-ten-word review.

Grandpa Green is not your run-of-the-mill picture book. It is a layered tale of loves lost and found and lost again but forever remembered. Like the collaborative City Dog, Country Frog, this book would be particularly appropriate for children who have lost a loved one, in this case a grandparent instead of a pet. But Grandpa Green trumps that Mo Willems/John J Muth effort, because it is imbued with a lifetime's worth of remembrances, supported by memory-anchored illustrations. As the boy recounts his great-grandfather's ultimately not so ordinary life, he progressively collects gardening tools that Grandpa Green has forgetfully left scattered throughout the garden. Enjoyably for the reader, most of these inventory items whimsically enhance the memories captured in the beautifully drawn (grown?) foliage. Some of Lane's artwork here is best appreciated on subsequent readings; I think I will let my kids find all the wonderful little details on their own.

The final page (in fact, the only page following the four-page fold-out dénouement) sees the boy creating a topiary on his own, this of his great-grandfather. Thus the cycle continues: the old man's love for horticulture--and the boy's love for the old man--both assured.

Jason Kirkfield, Vine Review, August 3, 2011

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars sublime January 23, 2012

By K. Francois

Format:Hardcover

The first time I read this to my rambunctious 5.5yo son I finished it and thought "huh, beautiful, but I don't feel like I got much out of it, how are children supposed to get this?" But as I went to set it to the side my son stopped me, he'd noticed something in the book and wanted to go through and read it again. Sure enough, another layer emerged at the second reading, and the third reading that night.

This has become one of our bedtime favorites. It's a book that gets us to slow down and talk about what we're reading (a slowness that pairs well with the topiary images I think). I'm thankful that the text is brief because it allows us to read it multiple times in an evening and fill in the spaces with our world observations. (and it really is beautifully illustrated.)

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful illustrations, story is lacking November 17, 2011

By V. Linnean VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Yes, this is a children's picture book with beautiful illustrations. It tells Granpa Green's story in topiaries throughout the book. It's very clever and something I've never seen before. However, it is a children's picture book, and the target audience is preschool children. My 4 1/2 year old son got rather bored with the book because there really is not much in the way of captivating text. My 20 month old daughter liked the pictures, but there are other books she goes to long before she'll pick this one up.

I think this is a sweet, old fashioned book that appeals more to parents than to young children. I also have a bit of an issue with the book talking about Grandpa going to war, and showing a topiary cannon. My son asked what that was, and at 4 1/2 I don't feel comfortable discussing war with him yet. Perhaps if he were 6 or 7, but this book doesn't have the story line to captivate children of that age.

Bottom Line: This is a beautiful coffee table book, but not something young children will love.