Thursday, November 9, 2017

My Grandpa's Chair by Jiyeon Pal - OPTIONAL

Pak, Jiyeon My Grandpa's Chair. PICTURE BOOK. Alfred A. Knopf, 2017. $17.99. 

When Julie notices that her grandpa is not as happy as he used to be sitting on his favorite couch, she suggests that perhaps he needs to find a new chair. Even after his fancy new chair arrives, Grandpa still is not happy sitting in it. Eventually Julie and Grandpa walk to the park, sit together on a simple tree stump, and Grandpa is happy. 

The message is clear that its not about the chair, but its who you are sitting by that makes the difference. I wanted to like this book more than I did, but three different readings did not make the difference. I enjoyed the illustrations and I liked the relationship between Grandpa and Julie. I did not really connect with the message of the story as told through chairs, however. Its a nice story, but not one that is going to grab many readers.

EL (K-3)--OPTIONAL. Reviewer: TC

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