  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 06/01/2014 K-Gr 3—When her grandmother begins exhibiting signs of Alzheimer's disease, Julia and her parents must come to terms with the illness and get her the care she needs. Grandma's slow alteration rings true: forgetting names, losing the car in a parking lot, and getting lost in a oft-visited place. Though the illustrations depict the child as quite young, her narration is rather adult in tone: "I remember when Grandma was still her old sweet self," "ever so slowly, like a low tide leaving the bay, a change came along," and, "When she sees her bed all abloom…." The mother's explanation of the disease is nonthreatening and easy for a child to understand. The pencil and ink washes, finished digitally and varying in size, subtly show how Grandma is becoming forgetful, from the dying plants and a watering can in the house to her mismatched socks and unkempt hair. Pair this with Mary Bahr's The Memory Box (Albert Whitman, 1992), which introduces the idea of how to preserve memories before they are lost forever.—Maryann H. Owen, Children's Literature Specialist, Mt. Pleasant, WI - Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
 |