cover image My New Granny

My New Granny

Elisabeth Steinkellner, trans. from the German by Connie Stradling Morby, illus. by Michael Roher. Skyhorse/Sky Pony, $16.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-62087-223-9

Roher's illustrations soften the difficult moments of Steinkellner's story, first published in Austria, in which a beloved grandmother goes from cooking "exotic dishes" and criticizing her granddaughter's expressive hairdos to needing constant supervision as a dementia patient in her daughter's home. Though Roher limits himself to a sepia palette, he imagines a complex life for the family, drawing spaces full of keepsakes and clutter. Fini takes Granny's strange new behaviors in stride, remaining unruffled when she falls asleep under the table ("We agreed that we would all help out," reproaches Fini's mother when Fini protests that she had only briefly left Granny alone). And Fini stays patient when Granny can no longer feed herself ("the spoon doesn't want to go into her mouth") or has to have her hair combed ("That can be my job," she says). Fini has some realistic moments of frustration, too%E2%80%94dementia is hard even for adults to cope with. The portrait of Granny and her loving household serves as a memorial to all such grandparents and their families. Ages 4%E2%80%938. (Sept.)