Me and you by Ellie Royce & Penelope Pratley

A wonderfully playful story of a child and her Gran, getting up, getting ready for the day and being together. 

When the child  gets out of bed she is ready to go, and this contrasts with her Gran who takes a little longer. The young one is full of bounce, while Gran creaks her way to the bathroom.

With backpacks on, the pair is ready to roll.They go to the beach, chase the seagulls, wade in the shallows, then find the ice cream van. Each shared event brings the pair closer as they see that they love the same things. They dance to the music played by the buskers, and shortly head for home, both needing a nap. 

After the nap, they work in the garden, the child helping Gran with digging and planting. A quiet time follows with Gran reading some stories, followed by bedtime, the child asking Gran to hold her hand as she goes to sleep. Gran responds, ‘if you will hold mine’.

This charming circular story has a child and her Gran both at different stages of life, coming together through things they do together. Gran takes the child to the beach sharing lots of activities, and growing closer as a result. The share things they like and are worried by, they share silly moments when they both drop ice cream on their shirts, and share holding hands as the child goes to sleep. 

The watercolour and pencil illustrations form a warm, inviting background to the story. Young readers will love looking at the activities the pair does, comparing the child’s time with her Gran with their own. The playful illustrations reflect the emphasis on family that flows from the text, inviting a warm response from readers as they see a multi generation interaction. Gran is shown as an older woman working with her grandchild, in doing things the pair can do together. They both share quiet times and at bedtime share the best of all things, holding hands as the child sleeps.  

Themes: Grandparents, Grandchild, Activities, Family, Humour.

Fran Knight