My Nana and Me [Hardcover]

Irene Smalls (Author), Cathy Ann Johnson (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

A young girl and her grandmother enjoy a day filled with tea parties, hide-and-seek, stories, and plenty of love.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2–As she did in Jonathan and His Mommy (1992) and Kevin and His Dad (1999, both Little, Brown), Smalls once again focuses on family relationships. In this charming picture book, an African-American girl tells readers about a special day that she shares with her grandmother. From a tea party and pat-a-cake to bath and bedtime, the routine activities will be widely recognized and celebrated for their simple pleasures. The child's voice allows the story to take on the rhythm of poetry. Several lines in particular recall many grandchild/grandparent relationships: I am the smartest girl in the world/I know because my Nana told me so, and Nana calls me her baby girl, but I'm/not a baby, I'm big. The affection between the two is reinforced by the golden-hued background and the watercolor illustrations of the smiling pair as they spend time together. The text adds to the playful spirit of the story by dancing across the pages and changing font style to emphasize certain words. A sweetening title that should win lots of smiles.–Maura Bresnahan, High Plain Elementary School, Andover, MA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

PreS-K. Lucky is a child with a loving grandmother, as this picture-book valentine demonstrates. A young African American girl describes a special day with Nana. They have a tea party, play hide-and-seek and dress-up, comb and plait Nana's hair, play pat-a-cake, and, after a bath, read stories before bedtime. Johnson's softly colored, warmhearted illustrations bring out the feelings of the loving relationship, which Smalls describes in her spare, rhythmic text. Sunny yellow hues backlight the child and her grandmother, reflecting their pleasure in doing simple things together. Asides printed in curly and wavy script express the girl's thoughts as Nana calls her "her sweetening girl." Endpapers provide space "to place a photo of you and your Nana here" indicating a push toward the gift market, but this is a gentle, tender selection that is suitable for libraries, too. Julie Cummins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 24 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (October 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316168211
• ISBN-13: 978-0316168212
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 0.4 x 10.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #265,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely Picture Book, December 2, 2005

By 

Kim Lewis "Kim" (Alston Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Nana and Me (Hardcover)

This is a lovely picture book representing a strong bond between a grandmother and her granddaughter. There are sweet little surprises found in the pictures...every time I read the book to my daughter we find something new. It is an easy read for a young child, simple text with warm pictures.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great book, January 9, 2007

By 

D. Vaughn - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My Nana and Me (Hardcover)

eventhough the cover is of a grandmother and her granddaughter, my son enjoys this book. He loves his grandma

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Book!, November 15, 2005

By 

Tony (ATL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Nana and Me (Hardcover)

This is a really beautiful book; I gave a copy to my mother for the grandchildren, and had to get more copies for other family members. When my mother saw it she grabbed it and held it to her chest. The illustrations are warm, and the story is really sweet. This is definitely a favorite in our collection of books.