Last spring and summer I opened many blog posts with a "Covid19" comment, anchoring the review or interview in "Covid time" and in relation to the current status of the Black Lives Matter movement or other all-consuming social markers. I stopped that some time ago, in part because I was beginning to feel as if the Covid 19 impact on our lives was a "new normal", while it simultaneously felt impossible to endure.
Now, more than a year has passed since the word "pandemic" became familiar rather than confusing, although no less terrifying. We've lived through more than a year without the traditions and close connections of holidays, birthdays, casual gatherings, and those all important hugs. But vaccines were developed, many of us have been vaccinated, and grandparents are FINALLY spending time with grandchildren.Two new picture books celebrate those very special relationships. Both feel as if they were written for these reunion gatherings (and beyond) despite the reality that they were in the works long before the pandemic began. And in both cases that lengthy publishing process was well spent to achieve exactly the right text and illustration pairing to capture the magic and love between a grandparent and grandchild.
Candlewick Press, 2021
MY RED HAT is written and illustrated by Rachel Stubbs.The opening spread shows Grandpa holding grandchild and a red hat on his lap. Told through his first person voice, the first line says it all:
"I give you my red hat."
In spot illustrations, parallels strips, and double spread scenes, Grandpa's equally simple statements on each page address the many situations in which that red hat, now worn by the child, is exactly the right addition to their perfectly paired twosome. Early scenes emphasize wry humor and surprising innovations (serving as a water bowl for a thirsty dog?). Gradually hyperbolic exaggeration in illustration and figurative language that plays out literally move the reader to understand that wearing the red hat provides the child with strength and curiosity and courage. The child, the hat, and faith in Grandpa lead the reader to a full circle homecoming.
When I began reading this I pictured a different ending, imagining that the return home would find Grandpa no longer there. Instead, their time together resumes in a perfectly satisfying way, followed by a gorgeous concluding double page spread at night, under the moon, with this simple line:
"This hat is for you."
That line, that image, that final scene combine to make this a delightful bedtime book. But it is so much more than that. It's a grandpa love story, a growing up brave and independent story, a you-are-my-world story, and a reminder that life is big and complex at the same time it is delicate and delightful and surprising. With a grandpa like this, one who gives you his red hat and the truths that it can hold, anything is possible.
Perhaps I was expecting a different ending from MY RED HAT because I had just finished reading I'LL BE THE WATER: A Story of Grandparent's Love, written by Alec Aspinwall and illustrated by Nicole Wong. This gentle book takes a very different approach in revealing the grandparent-grandchild relationship. In fact, it does something that is often discouraged in writing picture books: Ihe narrator's voice is that of a grown "child" looking back and remembering. 
Tilbury House Publishing, 2021
In this case, the simple statements and subtle illustrations reveal humor, love, and details that will connect with readers at both ends of the ages portrayed. Both Grandpa and the boy are aging slightly from page to page as they share peanut butter and banana sandwiches, create imaginary adventures, and go fishing.
Over the years, the boy notices that Grandpa's skin had grown too big for his face, and his hands shook when putting a worm on the hook. His answer to the boy's question is as simple and fun as their lives together:
"I've been getting old since I was a baby.
I'm just getting better at it."
After Grandpa's long scary stay in the hospital, they resume their times together. But Joshua's mind is a rushing current of questions. Their discussion about dying includes sensitive recollections, reassurances, and even some humor. I won't quote or even paraphrase Grandpa's wise and gentle insights about surviving the loss of his own father are young age, because the combination of text and illustration are stronger together. There is nothing original in the spirit and truth of Grandpa's conversation and assurances, but it is well-told and unfolds on the page in ways that are unique and memorable.
The full circle effect of the ending accounts for that "look back" adult voice early in the story. The central message is captured with immediacy and balanced emotions in the conversation featuring some extended dialogue from Grandpa. That does not become static or overly serious because his voice and the shifting perspectives of the illustrations allow readers to feel we are listening in on a conversation we were meant to hear. It is soothing and sinks in with a comforting ease.
Now that vaccinated grandparents can resume being physically present in the lives of their grandkids, I wish every child the opportunity to spend time with a grandparent or two in everyday experiences. These books call to mind that the everyday shared chats and activities are the fabric of an eventual memory quilt of love, memories that will wrap and support those who are left behind.
And, lest you suspect I've favored the grandpas by featuring these two books, take a click back to find a recent post about Grandmas, HERE.
