Picture Books about Wise and Wonderful Grandparents

Grandparents can play a special role in family life. These books about grandparents from diverse families demonstrate the important bond grandparents have with grandchildren, imparting wisdom, offering support and giving unconditional love.

Whether they live close by or faraway, grandparents have so much to offer, especially as read aloud partners so crack open these books and celebrate grandparents!

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Picture Books about Grandparents

My Grandma and Me by Mina Javaherbin, illustrated by Lindsey Yankey. This is a wonderful picture book about a girl's shared experiences with her grandmother in Iran. The girl narrates how her special relationship with her grandparent has given her wonderful memories of their time together, whether in play, religious devotion, or everyday tasks. The setting may be specific to Iran, but the feelings the girl describes are universal.

Nana Akua Goes to School by Tricia Elam Walker, illustrated by April Harrison. In this heartwarming book, Zura brings her grandmother to school on grandparents day. Nana Akua is from Ghana and Zura feels nervous about how her classmates will respond to her grandma's tribal facial markings. Using a quilt with West African Adinkra symbols, the pair explains the significance of the markings to the class.

Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson. A boy and his grandma catch the bus. We don't yet know where they are headed, but along the way the boy asks questions about why they don't have certain luxuries. He wants to know why they don't have a car or an ipod. The grandma has a ready answer about the advantages of what they do have and encourages him to think of the positive aspects of lacking material goods. When they reach their destination we find out that they were traveling to help out at a soup kitchen.

MORE: Children's Books about All Kinds of Families

Nana in the City is by Lauren Castillo. The big city can seem very scary when you are a small person and not used to the noise and the crowds. We should all be so lucky to have a grandma who gives us a special cape that helps us to be brave in the face of new experiences.

Thunder Cake by Patricia Polacco. A grandmother helps her grandchild overcome her fear of thunder. When a storm is on the horizon, the grandmother insists that they must get the traditional "thunder cake" in the oven before the storm arrives. However, some of the ingredients are not so easy to collect. They make the cake in the end, of course, and the storm rages outside while the calm settles inside.

Saturdays Are for Stella by Candy Wellins, illustrated by Charlie Eve Ryan. This gorgeous and moving book follows George, a young boy, as he describes how he loves spending Saturdays with his grandmother, Stella. I love their close relationship and how they enjoy both going out and staying in. When Stella passes away, George is devastated. He misses his grandmother and has a hard time coming to terms with the new, empty Saturdays. But when George gets a new sister and learns her name he discovers that his grandmother's memories can be a blessing even as he makes new memories on Saturdays with the new Stella.

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Berry Song by Michaela Goade. A child and her Tlingit grandmother share the experience of gathering berries while singing a harvest song. They reflect on the beauty of the surrounding nature, preparing the berries in the kitchen, and the changing of the seasons.

The Remember Balloons by Jessie Oliveros. Sometimes relationships with grandparents are coupled with difficulties due to age related decline. This sensitive tale of how a boy and his grandfather use balloons to represent memories offers children a positive way of coping with a grandparent's memory loss.

I Really Want to See You Grandma by Taro Gomi. I love this joyous book about the thrill of going to visit grandma. Yumi and her grandma are so excited about seeing each other that they race to the other's house–at the same time! They may cross en route, but they eventually reunite. So fun!

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In Plain Sight by Richard Jackson, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. In this absolutely charming story, readers will will learn about the rewards of careful observation as they are delighted by the loving relationship between Sophie and her grandfather. Sophie's grandfather lives with limited mobility but every afternoon Sophie comes to spend time with him and fetch him things. He asks her to find things that have "gone missing" although they are actually in plain sight. The illustrations reveal the interests of the grandfather as he and Sophie play their "finding game."

Ojiichan’s Gift by Chieri Uegaki, illustrated by Genevieve Simms. Mayumi learns how to care for and appreciate a garden from her grandfather. Mayumi’s grandfather lives in Japan and his garden is not filled with flowers, but with stones. When grandfather becomes too elderly to continue to live alone he must leave his house and garden. Mayumi channels her sadness over the loss by creating a small, mobile stone garden that her grandfather can always have with him.

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Drawn Together by Minh Lê. This is an absolutely gorgeous book with a lovely intergenerational message. A boy and his grandfather are visiting each other, but they have trouble communicating as there is a language barrier. The key, however, is art. By drawing together, they learn to understand each other.

Mango, Abuela and Me by Meg Medina, illustrated by Angela Dominguez. Mia's Spanish-speaking abuela has come to live with the family. Mia and her grandmother now share a room, but they don't know how to communicate. Abuela can't read Mia's English books and Mia doesn't have enough Spanish words to share her experiences. One day Mia brings home a parrot which reminds Mia of her grandmother's previous home and eventually, through practice, the family learns how to communicate fluently with each other.  Also available in Spanish.

Abuela by Arthur Dorros, illustrated by Elisa Kleven. A girl and her Abuela hop on a bus to the park where she imagines flying high above New York City. On their imaginary flight they take in all the diverse and exciting scenes of city life. The text is peppered with Spanish words and phrases. Those of you looking for good books featuring positive grandparent-grandchild relationships, you will like this one. I also adore the vibrant, colorful illustrations, full of details to study over. Also available in Spanish.

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Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book by Yuyi Morales. I adore trickster tales and this one about a grandmother who outsmarts a skeleton is quite a treat. A skeleton comes to fetch Grandma Beetle on her birthday, but the clever woman thwarts him as she claims to have too many chores to do first.  The tale seamlessly weaves Spanish language numbers into the humorous narrative as grandma counts up the tasks she must do in order to keep the skeleton at bay.

Bagels from Benny by Aubrey Davis, illustrated by Dušan Petričić. I love the message in this book. Benny loves to help his grandfather in his bagel shop. One day after Benny's grandfather says "Don't thank me," to a customer, Benny asks why. His grandfather explains that it is God who provided the ability to make the bagels. Benny decides to thank God by leaving bagels in the synagogue. The bagels start disappearing and Benny wonders if it is God who is eating them. Instead, he finds out that a hungry man has been taking the bagels to feed his family. At first Benny is upset that it wasn't God who had been eating the bagels, but his grandfather teaches him that his gift did thank God since it made the world a little better.

Lucía the Luchadora by Cynthia Leonor Garza, illustrated by Alyssa Bermudez. This is a fun, exuberant book. Lucia runs through the playground with her red cape, and the boys tell her "girls can't be superheroes." This makes Lucia mad, "Spicy mad. KA-POW kind of mad." Then, her grandmother tells her about the luchadoras and together they hatch a marvelous plan.

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A Morning with Grandpa by Sylvia Liu, illustrated by Christina Forshay. Mindfulness doesn't have to take place in solitude! I adore this book about how a girl connects with her grandfather over the practice of Tai Chi. Mei Mei joins her grandpa in the morning for his daily ritual but while he is smooth and graceful, Mei Mei puts her own spin on things, reminding us that mindfulness need not always be practiced in the stillness. A wonderful story.

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Wild Berries by Julie Flett. A boy and his grandmother collect blueberries in the wood. Along the way they observe wildlife from the ants to the elk to the birds. The overall feeling is one of calm mindfulness and the illustrations' deceptive simplicity adds to that feeling. The spare text is in English, but some of the words are accompanied by their Cree equivalent. A glossary and pronunciation guide is included.

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The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Raschka. Yes, indeed-y the author of The Phantom Tollbooth has a picture book! A young girl loves visiting her grandparents who have an inviting kitchen window you can climb into, look out of, and see your reflection in. The text takes us on a journey with the child as she describes her special relationship with her Poppy and Nanna.

Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love. After seeing some fancily dressed women on the subway, Julián wants to dress up. At home he turns his abuela's fern into a fancy hat, and her curtains into a mermaid's tail. But instead of getting upset at Julián, his abuela takes him to a celebration where everyone is as fantastically dressed as he is. A lovely and warm story about acceptance and expressing yourself.

A Fire Engine for Ruthie. by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Cyd Moore. Ruthie goes to visit her grandmother, who has prepared for tea parties, dolls and dress-up. What Ruthie wants to do, however, is play with trains and fire engines and other things that go. When Nana finally asks Ruthie what she wants to do, Ruthie responds that she wants to play with the boy next door. The two become fast friends, bonding over train tracks and tractor-trailers. Ruthie's Nana takes notice of what her granddaughter likes to play and joins in the fun herself. I like how Nana is quick to follow her granddaughter's lead once she realizes that maybe all the "girly" things she had planned for the two of them weren't really Ruthie's "cup of tea" (so to speak).

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The Raft by Jim LaMarche. Nicky goes to visit his grandmother who lives by a river in the woods. At first he thinks the summer is going to be boring, but Nicky's grandmother encourages him to get outside. On the river he discovers a raft. He takes it out one afternoon and it becomes his daily activity. While floating every day, he admires the local flora and fauna. He even begins sketching what he sees. What I also love about this book is the development of the relationship between Nicky and his grandparent.