This is a story of a Christmas holiday that young Eric spends with his grandmother. After they prepare their traditional Puerto Rican celebration, Eric and Grandma visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a school project, where he sees a painting by Diego Velasquez and realizes for the first time that he could be an artist when he grows up. Grandma witnesses his fascination, and presents Eric with the perfect Christmas gift - a sketchbook and colored pencils - to use in his first steps toward becoming an artist. A heartwarming story of self-discovery, Grandma's Gift is a celebration of the special bond between a grandparent and grandchild.
Based on the author's family and childhood, Grandma's Gift excellently depicts the familial bond and love between a young Pueto Rican boy and his Spanish-speaking grandma as they help one another throughout the winter holiday break. Grandma teaches Eric how to make pasteles, a Puerto Rican holiday dish, and takes Eric to the museum to fulfill his homework assignment of seeing a painting of Juan de Pareja. Meanwhile, Eric translates from English to Spanish for his Grandmother whenever they leave el Barrio. The descriptions and pictures are extremely detailed - particularly when demonstrating how Grandma wrapped the pasteles. The oil paintings in this book are outstanding; they look so similar to a photograph in some cases that I had to do a double take.
Many Spanish words and phrases are mixed in throughout the book. Your child will learn how to say merry Christmas, thank you, the names of many fruits and vegetables, and a handful of casual sentences in Spanish. The sentences are written out in Spanish first then followed by the English translation in parenthesis. For english speaking children, this will expose him or her to another language. After reading the book at least once, try just saying the Spanish sentences, and see if your child can pick out any of the words. The realistic pictures are also likely to raise questions about what things are. In particular, when Eric's grandmother asks him to pick out a record to play. Be prepared for the inevitable, "What is that thing?"
Eric Velasquez, the son of Afro-Puerto Rican parents, was born in Spanish Harlem and grew up in Harlem in New York City. As a child, his love for doodling and drawing was strongly encouraged by his mother. From his grandmother he inherited a love of music and from his father he developed a love of movies. Growing up in this setting, Eric says, "Becoming an artist was a natural choice for me. I have never thought of being anything else."