Every year when Mayumi and her family visit Japan, she and her grandfather tend a garden made only of gravel and stones, but when her grandfather grows too old to care for the garden, Mayumi gives him a gift they both can cherish. - (Baker & Taylor)
Chieri Uegaki is the author of Rosie and Buttercup, Suki's Kimono and Hana Hashimoto, Sixth Violin. Her books have garnered such honors as the 2015 Ezra Jack Keats Book Award. Chieri lives on the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia.
Ojiichan's Gift is the first picture book for award-winning illustrator Genevieve Simms. Her illustration clients include House of Anansi Press, the Walrus and the Boston Globe. Genevieve lives in Toronto, Ontario.
- (
Grand Central Pub)
Booklist Reviews
Every summer, when Mayumi visits her grandfather in Japan, she enjoys the garden he created for her beside his home. Trees, bushes, and bamboo surround the open space, where dark rocks resemble mountains rising from a bed of light-colored gravel. Together, they pull weeds and rake the gravel into patterns. Afterwards, they sit there, quiet and happy. But one summer, grandfather is no longer able to live in his home. Angry, Mayumi tries to topple the garden's largest rock, but she cannot. Later, she recreates the garden in a box and gives it to Ojiichan, and back home, she makes another for herself. An appended glossary defines the few Japanese words appearing in the text. Partly inspired by the author's father, "a traditional Japanese landscaper and gardener," this understated story communicates the power of an intergenerational bond, first expressed by the making of the garden and later affirmed by Mayumi's gift to her grandfather. The watercolor illustrations, which often feature the garden, capture the characters' emotions with clarity and finesse. A rewarding Canadian picture book. Preschool-Grade 2. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.
