Grandpa's Girls

Publisher's description (Groundwood Books, 2011): 
A young girl delights in a visit to her grandpa's farm. She and her cousins run through the fields, explore the root cellar where the salmon and jars of fruit are stored, swing on a rope out the barn loft window, visit the Appaloosa in the corral and tease the neighbor's pig. The visit is also an opportunity for this child to ask Grandpa what her grandmother, Yayah, was like, and to explore the "secret room," with its old wooden trunk of ribbons, medals and photos of Grandpa in uniform. 

There is a wonderful blend of fun and family history in this visit to a grandparent, and the realization that there can be some things about the people we know and love that will always remain a mystery. But above all, there's nothing like being with Grandpa. 

In her two previous Picturebooks, Shi-shi-etko and Shin-chi's Canoe, Nicola Campbell worked with elders and survivors of residential schools, documenting the tragic experiences that many endured. This new book, based on her own childhood memories, is a sunny, joyful story, vibrantly illustrated by Kim LaFave. *Note: This book addresses how Indigenous men fought in WWII, so although it is a picturebook it would be an interesting piece to add to high school.

Creator Biographies (http://nicolacampbellauthor.blogspot.com/ and Strong Nations): 
Author Nicola Campbell is Nłe7kepmx, Syilx and Métis and is named after her home, BC’s Nicola Valley. She has a BFA and a MFA in creative writing and is currently working towards a doctoral degree focusing on contemporary Indigenous Storytelling at UBC Okanagan in Kelowna, BC. She is the author of four childrens books. A Day with Yayah (2017), published by Tradewind Books. Grandpa’s Girls, was a finalist for the 2012 Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize. Shin-chi’s Canoe received the 2009 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and is on the 2009 USBBY Outstanding International Books List. Shin-chi’s Canoe is the sequel to Shi-shi-etko and was a finalist for the 2009 Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award and a 2008 Governor Generals award for illustration. Shi-shi-etko was a finalist for the 2006 Ruth Schwartz Children’s Book Award, the 2006 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the 2006 Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. It was the co-winner of the 2006 Anskohk Aboriginal Children’s Book of the Year Award. 

Kim LaFave has won the Governor General's Award, the Ruth Schwartz Children's Book Award and the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Award for his illustrations in Amos’s Sweater by Janet Lunn. He illustrated Shin-chi's Canoe by Nicola I. Campbell, which was a finalist for the Governor General's Award. He lives in Roberts Creek, B.C.

Resource format: Picturebook

Age recommendation: Pre-K to Grade 2

Keywords: family history, Elders, survivors, kinship, Indigenous men, WWII, explore, siblings, farm, farm animals, grandpa, grandma, cousins, aunties, horse pig, canning, root cellar, mementos, veteran, play, yuxkn, chicken coop, imaginary play, hay loft, tractor, yayah, army, childhood, adventure at grandpas

Year of publication: 2011

Publisher information: Groundwood Books