Title: Grandpa Green
Author: Lane Smith
Illustrator: Lane Smith
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
ISBN: 9781596436077

Themes: Family, memory, love, creativity, remembering, story, history

Grandpa was a sailor, a husband, a gardener, a soldier and an artist…

My favourite book of 2011, Grandpa Green is a whimsical beauty, an awe inspiring treasure, a joyful surprise… you get the drift. I’ve already purchased 6 copies of this book because I continue to give it out as gifts to friends & family.

Grandpa Green is a perfect example as to the beauty of the picture book, it’s use of colour and images that flow from one page to another seamlessly, a simple take told well, visually stunning and touching.

And that it came from Lane Smith, who is possibly better known for his more comical side I think has helped it surprise us all (in a very nice way), after all, it’s not that often that such a touching, inspiring and poignant book is released. When I opened it I was expecting to giggle a bit, laugh at Lane’s wit and humourous tale, instead I found a multi-layered, emotionally charged, simple, haunting and beautiful piece of art, and I had to sit and sigh as the story made a space in my soul.

Read this tale over and over again, you’ll hear voices of the past, imagine tales of days gone by, allow the young boy to introduce you to his grandfather whom he loves dearly and his garden that holds the memories of years past.