Llama Llama Gram and Grandpa

by Anna Dewdney

Overview

On an overnight visit to Gram and Grandpa, Llama Llama realizes he forgot Fuzzy LLama.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780670013968
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	09/01/2015
Series:	Llama Llama Series
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	62,185
Product dimensions:	10.10(w) x 10.40(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD180L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

Anna Dewdney was a teacher, mother, and enthusiastic proponent of reading aloud to children. She continually honed her skills as an artist and writer and published her first Llama Llama book in 2005. Her passion for creating extended to home and garden and she lovingly restored an 18th century farmhouse in southern Vermont. She wrote, painted, gardened, and lived there with her partner, Reed, her two daughters, two wirehaired pointing griffons, and one bulldog. Anna passed away in 2016, but her spirit will live on in her books.

Editorial Reviews

09/01/2015
PreS—Dewdney tackles the topic of staying at Gram and Grandpa's overnight. Llama is excited for his special visit as he packs up his clothes and his stuffed animal, Fuzzy Llama. However, when he unpacks, he realizes, rather upsettingly, that his comfort object was left behind. Gram and Grandpa spend the day distracting little Llama by playing outside or building in the workshop, but with each activity, he anxiously remembers Fuzzy Llama's absence. While the text carries along with a seemingly pleasing nighttime routine ("Take a bath./Then comb and brush./Settle in for stories. Hush./Finish books/and get a kiss"), the illustrations show Llama looking more distressed and anxious before bed. After Gram asks what's the matter, we watch as "Llama's lips begin to quiver./Llama starts to shake and shiver./Llama needs his Fuzzy near,/but FUZZY LLAMA ISN'T HERE!" The following page shows all three Llamas looking at readers for help. Quickly, it's Grandpa who finds a solution. Grandpa offers a special toy from when he was just a little boy. In a satisfying ending, Llama realizes he's not alone and that he's in his "home… away from home." With a carefully crafted rhyming text and comforting painted images that match genuinely the emotion of a toddler's first night away from home, this book is a charming success. VERDICT Parents and caregivers will appreciate the reassuring message that this story offers for one-on-one sharing, and it will function as a heartwarming read-aloud in a bedtime-themed storytime.—Brianne Colombo, Pequannock Township Public Library, NJ

School Library Journal

2015-06-23
Llama Llama reaches another childhood milestone—his first sleepover.Llama Llama is going to spend the night at Gram and Grandpa's house. It is his first trip away from home. He packs his bag and grabs his favorite stuffed animal, Fuzzy Llama. When Mama drives away, Fuzzy can be seen all alone, still inside the car. Observant readers will spot the problem right away, but Llama Llama doesn't realize Fuzzy is missing until he unpacks. He tries very hard to be brave. He doesn't tell anyone and even makes Fuzzy a tiny chair in Grandpa's workshop. But at night, when it is finally time to go to sleep, Llama Llama's lip quivers, and his eyes well up with tears. "Llama needs his Fuzzy near, / but FUZZY LLAMA ISN'T HERE!" Luckily, Grandpa Llama has the perfect solution, and everyone can sleep tight. Dewdney's familiar staccato rhymes highlight family warmth and togetherness, plus a little levity too. "Grandma's house has different food. / Something squishy. Something stewed." All can relate to that (and it turns out to be quite tasty).For longtime fans and new readers of the beloved Llama Llama series alike, this won't disappoint. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Llama Llama Gram and Grandpa:

"With a carefully crafted rhyming text and comforting painted images that match genuinely the emotion of a toddler’s first night away from home, this book is a charming success." —School Library Journal  

From the Publisher