When Grandparents Raise the Kids: A Roundup of Books

The Grandma Book, by Todd Parr
We’re BIG Todd Parr fans here, and we have most of his picture books on our shelves. This story introduces young readers to the many kinds of grandmas in the world and eloquently dismisses stereotypes. “Some grandmas have a lot of cats, some grandmas have a lot of purses. Some grandmas give advice…others help their neighbors.” In his bright neon, supersaturated colors, Parr illustrates what how unique every grandma is, but also how similar: “All grandmas like to hear from you,” and “All grandmas like to give you lots of kisses.” The books end with a short message about grandparents and a reminder to tell them that you love them, and his message is such a positive one: no matter what your family looks like, your love for each other is what really matters.

Who’s in My Family?: All About Our Families, by Robie H. Harris and Nadine Bernard Westcott
“Wherever you live, wherever you go, there are all kinds of families.” Another optimistic, comforting picture book about diverse families, this one starts with a visit to the zoo where we learn about different kinds of families. Some kids eat different foods, and some kids look different from their parents (“In some families, people’s eyes are different colors or different shapes”). Some kids live with their grandparents. Some kids have two moms or two dads. Some kids are adopted. Some kids have two homes. In the end, this is what matters: families “love to be together” and care for one another, even in “mad times” and “sad times.”

The Secret Hum of a Daisy, by Tracy Holczer
Twelve-year-old Grace and her mom have always been a family, the two of them going from place to place like gypsies, but now Grace wants to have a home all her own. Until her mother says it’s time to move again. Then her mother tragically drowns in an accident, so Grace has to go and live with a grandmother she has never met. In a town that holds the secrets of her family’s past, Grace grieves. (“I shivered in my sleeping bag, feeling the chill of the river, and wondered if my dreams were bringing me one piece of Mama’s death at a time”). Along the way, she struggles to face her sadness, forgive, and learn what being family really means.

Love, Aubrey, by Suzanne LaFleur
Here’s another poignant middle grade novel about being forced to live with a grandmother you’ve never met. After her father and younger sister die in a car accident and her mother abandons her, 11-year-old Aubrey decides she can take care of herself. First, she buys canned food (and a pet fish) with her birthday money, then she sets out to watch a lot of TV. Aubrey isn’t answering the phone, so finally her concerned grandmother shows up. Aubrey has to leave her Virginia home to live with her grandma in Vermont, where she grapples with abandonment and begins to grieve. This is a moving middle grade novel about a girl learning how to cope, heal, and move on after such a devastating tragedy. There’s a comforting, compassionate message here to remind kids that you’re never alone as long as you have a grandma.

Some Kind of Happiness, by Claire Legrand
Finley’s parents are going through a rough patch so they need some space to work things out (or not), so they send 11-year-old Finley to her estranged grandparents’ country estate for the summer with some cousins she has never met. In this dark multi-layered fantasy, Finley allows her cousins into her imaginary world at the Everwood, a forest kingdom that exists in the pages of her notebook. Writing is what helps her face her deep anxiety in this coming-of-age tale, as she learns to trust her family and feel brave in the world.