Something to Remember Me By

Deborah Dowson is a children’s librarian in Caledon East, Ontario.

This is a touching and evocative story of devotion and caring between a
grandmother and her granddaughter. The child experiences a special
feeling of comfort as she grows up sharing many wonderful moments with
her loving grandmother. Over the years the grandmother gives her
grandchild gifts with the words “something to remember me by.”
Although the keepsakes are important, the most important things that the
grandmother has given the girl are a wealth of memories and the values
that her nurturing has engendered. As the grandmother ages and starts to
experience memory loss and illness, it is the granddaughter’s turn to
give comfort and devotion to her aged grandparent. The gentleness and
warmth of the illustrations mirrors the relationship of the characters
as they age and change.

This picture book gives children an opportunity to explore, with adult
guidance, the subjects

of intergenerational relationships, aging and memory loss, and the loss
of loved ones. The book is accompanied by an exceptionally
well-considered Reader’s Companion and includes an excellent annotated
bibliography of reading and resources that will be particularly useful
for teachers or workshop facilitators. Highly recommended.