Free to a Good Home

January 1, 2013

Gr 1-4-The Smith house is filled with useful things collected by the family members. At least, they are sure they will be useful someday. Siblings Peter and Sally always carry home the interesting things they find, and one day come with-a Granny. After all, Peter told his dad, "You never know when something might come in handy." Granny changes the Smiths' lives with her gifts of baking and gardening; she makes herself at home, teaching Peter how to do his multiplication tables or putting up shelving. In short, Granny makes the Smith family complete (they have all they need "except for a Grandad"). Pen-and-ink figures meld with digital and photographic images while stripes, flowers, and muted patterns accompany Impressionistic art on walls (or tubs) in whimsical scenes of the family at home. A solitary black bird dominates a Poe-inspired nighttime conversation in bed as Mr. and Mrs. Smith discuss Granny's future; before and after images record a 15-layer chocolate cake being demolished. The characters are treated with loving detail from Dad's button-free cuffs to Mom's spiked hair and ever-changing nail polish, but it's Granny who literally lights up the family. This is a zany and humorous look at families.-Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano ISD, TX

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