What Grandmas Do Best What Grandpas Do Best [Hardcover]

Laura Numeroff (Author), Lynn Munsinger (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grandmas can do lots of things, like paint with you, take you on a picnic, and teach you how to dance. But what do they do best? The answer is made perfectly clear in this Irresistible celebration of grandparents and the everyday things they do.

Grandpas can do lots of things, like play hide-and-seek, help you build a sand castle, and sing you a lullaby. But what do they do best? The answer is made perfectly clear In this irresistible celebration of grandparents and the everyday things they do.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This companion to the immensely likable What Mommies Do Best/ What Daddies Do Best is another two-in-one book: after finishing "What Grandmas Do Best," readers can flip the book over to find "What Grandpas Do Best." Again, Numeroff's straightforward text is identical for both segments (both grandmas and grandpas can "play hide-and-seek, make you a hat, and take you for a walk"). The fun lies in Munsinger's magnificently anthropomorphized animals, and the way each grandparent puts his or her spin on the words: Grandma Cat knits her grandkitten a fetching snow hat, while Grandpa Guinea Pig fashions a chapeau out of newspapers, tape and glue. Perhaps because her lead characters are senior citizens, this book is more subdued in tone than its predecessor; Numeroff seems not to have mined her considerable imagination as deeply for comic contrasts (both expected and unexpected) between male and female grandparents. Still, every spread radiates with the gentle and abiding affection that connects the generations. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Wonderful for quiet lap-sit storytimes with small children, this two-for-one picture book is split in half to tell the same simple story twice. With just a few words per page, the text communicates big concepts succinctly through lively ink-and-watercolor illustrations that differentiate one kind of fun from another. "Grandpas can paint with you" presents young readers with a seriously artistic, oil-and-easel grandfather pig, for example. But a visit with a grandmother gerbil on the other side of the book demonstrates another way to paint altogether. These warm, cheerful vignettes are sure to resonate with children. Many kinds of loving families appear throughout each 17-page story; elephants, dogs, monkeys, and frogs all share quality time with their loving relatives. Children will enjoy noticing the different ways to dance, have a picnic, or make a hat, and while they may find turning the book around to locate them a little awkward, it's a small price to pay for this charming introduction to the special times shared with grandparents.
Catherine T. Quattlebaum, DeKalb County Public Library, Atlanta, GA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689805527
• ISBN-13: 978-0689805523
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,199 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Laura Numeroff grew up in Brooklyn, with her mother, father and two older sisters. Her house was filled with books, art, music and folk dancing.

She attended Pratt Institute and graduated with a degree in communications and a contract for her first children's book, AMY FOR SHORT, published in 1975 by Macmillan.

A New York Times best-selling children's book author, Laura is best known for the series based on her book IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIE. First printed in 1985, "Mouse" is in its 40th printing. The fourth book in the series, IF YOU TAKE A MOUSE TO THE MOVIES was on the New York Times Children's Best Seller list for five months- nine weeks at number one.

Publisher's Weekly listed IF YOU TAKE A MOUSE TO THE MOVIES as the number two book for children in 2000 (Harry Potter was number one) and at one point, Laura had three books on the New York Times Bestseller List in the same week.

In 2000, IF YOU GIVE A PIG A PANCAKE was featured on the Oprah show three times, and was recommended by Oprah's first kids' book club, as well as being noted as Oprah's favorite children's book of the year on her Christmas show. "PIG" was also on Publisher's Weekly Bestseller List for over a year. In addition, the series has sold over 4.5 million copies, been printed in fourteen languages, and won the prestigious Quill Award in the picture book category.

Some of Laura's other books currently in print are: WHAT MOMMIES DO BEST/WHAT DADDIES DO BEST, DOGS DON'T WEAR GLASSES, THE CHICKEN SISTERS, WHY A DISGUISE? The first two books in Laura's JELLYBEANS book series made the New York Times Best Seller List.

Hillary Clinton, President Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush have all read Laura's books to kids. First Lady Michelle Obama, her mother, her daughters, Malia and Sasha read Laura's book at the 2010 Easter Egg Roll on the White House Lawn. Laura was one of ten children's authors invited to a literacy day in Washington during the Bush administration in 2001. She has also visited over 100 elementary schools and has been a speaker at teacher conferences around the country.

Laura donates book sales to FIRST BOOK, a non-profit organization that provides brand new books to children who otherwise would not have access to them. She has also donated all royalties from THE HOPE TREE- KIDS TALK OUT ABOUT BREAST CANCER, to the Susan B. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Laura has appeared on The Today show twice as well as Good Morning America. On her December 13th, 2000 appearance on The Today Show, Laura donated 500 Mouse mini-books with doll ornaments to the show's toy drive.

When not writing, Laura takes tennis lessons (she says she's not very good but loves it anyway), reads to children in hospitals and foster homes and calls herself a book and movie fanatic.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two Great Children's Books in One, June 9, 2005

By 

Jeffrey T. Munson (Dixon, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: What Grandmas Do Best What Grandpas Do Best (Hardcover)

This fine children's book is actually two books; What Grandmas Do Best and What Grandpas Do Best. The illustrations are very colorful and show the grandparents and grandchildren doing all sorts of fun things together, such as playing hide-and-seek, dancing, going to the beach, and going on a picnic. When you're done reading one of the stories, simply turn the book over and begin the second one!

This is a terrific book for young children. It does a good job of promoting the bond between grandparents and young children, and it also gives them many fun ideas of different things they can do with grandma and grandpa. This has become a favorite of my children, and they enjoy hearing both stories before bed. Pick up this good children's book and learn about the many fun things children can do with their grandparents. Your children will thank you for it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lynn Munsinger's charming illustrations alone make this a book to buy., April 3, 2009

By 

Alayne Kay Christian - Author of Butterfly Ki... - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: What Grandmas Do Best What Grandpas Do Best (Hardcover)

I love the way Laura Numeroff offers the wonderful message that Grandma and Grandpa can do the same things. They just might approach them a little differently. This includes what they do best. For example, they both play games with their grandchild. Grandma plays cards and Grandpa plays miniature golf. They both make hats for their grandchild. Grandpa makes folded newspaper hats and Grandma knits hats. Every page emphasizes the special bond between grandchild and grandparent - especially when they get to what Grandma and Grandpa do best.

Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars companion book to What Mommies Do Best, March 6, 2009

By 

Wendy J. Neff (Alabama) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: What Grandmas Do Best What Grandpas Do Best (Hardcover)

This book, What Grandmas Do Best, flips over to become What Grandpas Do Best. This is a companion book to What Mommies Do Best/What Daddies Do Best, and I think it is as wonderful as the first. We are waiting for the final critic, the nearly three year old great niece, who fell in love with the Mommies/Daddies book and had to have her own copy.