My Pop Pop and Me [Hardcover]

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

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

A young boy who loves to sniff the lemon whiff and to clink the dishes in the sink helps his Pop Pop bake a cake.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1–This tasty love story is told by an African-American boy who shares his love for his grandfather and lemon cake. It captures a sweet memory of a child baking with his elderly relative and the wonder and love that go into the recipe. The rhyming text seems forced at times and is somewhat uneven, e.g., Sniff sniff the lemon whiff/Peel peel I love the lemon feel/Pish pish the lemon till it's squished. However, the mood is cheery, the temperature is toasty, and the illustrations keep the story moving along until the cake is done. Johnson's art swirls from page to page, using humor and changing perspective to add spark and sparkle to the story. This book would be a good choice for teaching young children about onomatopoeia and for discussing extended families and gender roles.–Mary Hazelton, Elementary Schools in Warren & Waldoboro, ME
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

PreS-K. An African American grandfather, Pop Pop, and his grandson transform baking a lemon cake into a magical mystery tour of sound and rhythm: "Sniff sniff the lemon whiff / Peel peel I love the lemon feel." Warm, soft, stylized watercolors add a surreal element to the lively story, especially as fish-eye perspectives sweep the pages and boy and grandfather sometimes shrink down to measuring-cup size. The inevitable messes and cleanup of any kitchen project are faithfully recorded: "Blat blat goes the batter I splat / Swipe swipe the counter I wipe." The inventive wordplay is quirky ("sizzle sizzle the butter frizzles"), but it somehow makes sense that sprinkled salt would twinkle or that whisks would twisk. The closing recipe for lemon cake is unfortunately missing the delicious-looking frosting and the layering instructions that would be required to replicate the cake pictured here. Nonetheless, this is an affectionate, energetic paean to a cross-generational dynamic duo. Karin Snelson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 24 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (May 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316734225
• ISBN-13: 978-0316734226
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 9.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #962,306 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:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good read!, May 23, 2006

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

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

For far too long there didn't seem to be children's books that celebrated relationships between grandparents and their grandchildren. My Pop Pop and Me by Irene Smalls has contributed to what I hope is a growing trend of stories that are fun, informative and celebrate the love between generations.

Pop Pop and his grandson spend the day together in the kitchen cooking. Yes, two guys are cooking! How wonderful. They explore the kitchen and make a luscious lemon cake. The author even shares the recipe with the readers.

The illustrations are cute, big and bold with soft, inviting colors. Children will be drawn to the kitchen scenes and the relationship between grandpa and grandson. I'm always looking for books with racial diversity and My Pop Pop and Me fits my criteria with the African-American characters.

Armchair Interviews says: Grandparents, this is a perfect book to purchase for that special grandchild. You can bake the cake together and then snuggle on the sofa reading My Pop Pop and Me.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a great book...Purchased for my son and his grandfather., March 9, 2007

By 

Tony (ATL) - See all my reviews

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

This is a wonderful book that shows the relationship between a grandfather and his grandson. I love the subject of having the relationship take place in the kitchen.
As the story progress the kitchen gets messy, and it shows child washing his hands cooking and cleaning... The pictures jump off the page. They show the little boy doing boyish things in the story...Beautiful book very warm and I love the ending.