Presents+From+Grandma

=Presents From Grandma= =Written by Jan Mark &= =Illustrated by Graham Percy=

Book Review by: Allison Reis


 * Bibliographical Data:**

"Presents from Grandma" by Jan Mark and Graham Percy Publisher: Discovery Toys, ©1988 Hardcover ISBN10: 0939979233 Pages: 25 Language: English


 * Author Biography:**

Jan Mark was a british writer, best known for her children's books. Mark was a secondary school teacher and then decided to become a full time writer in 1974. She is known for her short stories that use an imaginative language. Some of her popular books are //My Frog and I, Thunder and Lightnings// and //Fun with Mrs. Thumb.// Mark also wrote novels for young adults. She was beloved in Belgium, where she joined an educational project to inspire teachers of English to utilize teenage fiction books in the classroom. She was passionate about her work, and was recognized by the Library Association in winning the annual Carnegie Medal in Literature.


 * Summary:**

This story is about a boy named Mick, whose grandma loves to knit. Grandma came to visit the family and she gave everyone presents. The presents were all articles of clothing that the Grandma had knit. Mick's sisters received colorful sweaters, while Mick got a plain brown sweater. While grandma was visiting, she knit more things for the family. Once again, Mick got a hat and gloves, but they were both navy blue and had no fun colors or designs on them. Mick was upset about this, and was jealous of the pretty things his sisters were getting. One day, Mick's sisters got sick, and Mick went to stay with grandma so he wouldn't get sick. Mick and his grandma did a bunch of fun activities, such as going to the zoo, painting a fence, going to the river to watch the boats sail and flying kites. After each activity, Mick told his grandma "I bet you can't knit that." Grandma took on the challenge, and knit scenes from each activity. Grandma knit a kite, a sail boat and a gorilla they saw at that zoo. All of these scenes were made into a sweater that Mick took home. Mick was so excited for his new sweater, because not only did his new sweater have colors and designs that he wanted, but it also had the memories of the time well spent with his grandma.


 * Book Review:**

I love this book! Personally, I love this book because I can relate to it. My grandma is a huge knitter, and my family and I are always receiving new things such as hats, gloves, scarves and sweaters. So in a way, I can relate to Mick and his family. This is a fun book to read because as a reader, you can see how the relationship between Mick and his grandmother grows. Even though Mick is upset in the beginning of the book, he slowly becomes happy as the book goes on because his grandma is knitting something he likes. Also, Mick and his grandma are bonding, and are creating memories that will forever be remembered because they are knit onto his sweater.


 * Literary Element Analysis:**

The illustrations and character development are two literary elements that I find important in this book. First off, the illustrations by Graham Percy really depict what is being read in the book. The scenes illustrated are clear and can help the reader in understanding why Mick is upset about the knitted things he received from his grandma. As the book goes on, Mick spends time with his grandma and his grandma knits scenes from the time spent. Percy uses vivid colors and great detail in representing the pictures being knitted on the sweater. The colors and designs are what Mick was looking for in his new sweater, and he becomes elated with his new sweater. Mick developed in this story from being upset with his sweaters he was receiving, to becoming happy and thankful for what he has. In the beginning of the novel, Mick did not seem thankful for the items grandma was giving him because he did not like what he was getting, nor did he have a say in what he wanted. Mick stayed with his grandma for a few days, and they spent a lot of time together and did a lot of fun activities. Mick challenged his grandma to knit the things they saw on a sweater. Some of the things he challenged her to knit were a gorilla, a boat and a kite. Grandma was able to knit those things on the sweater, and Mick ended up having a colorful sweater that he wanted. Not only was his sweater colorful and had the designs he was looking for, but he became thankful for what he had because he had a say in his sweater and created memorable moments with his Grandma.