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Grandfather and the Moon
This moving graphic novel tells the story of the affection between a girl and her grandfather. When the grandfather withdraws in grief after his wife dies, the girl is determined to live life fully herself and enters an extraordinary contest — the result is a sensitive portrayal of pursuing a dream.
Grandfather, a man of few words, is devastated when his beloved wife succumbs to cancer, and he sinks into depression. His granddaughter (“MarMar,” as he calls her) has a different response. She decides to enter the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest, and when she actually wins, she hopes that Grandfather will be proud of her. She embarks on the thrilling journey and at first it is wonderful, but just as she is about to reach the moon, her journey takes an unexpected turn.
Written by Stéphanie Lapointe and beautifully illustrated by Rogé, this imaginative graphic novel explores intergenerational relationships, love, death, dreams and illusions.
Grandfather, a man of few words, is devastated when his beloved wife succumbs to cancer, and he sinks into depression. His granddaughter (“MarMar,” as he calls her) has a different response. She decides to enter the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest, and when she actually wins, she hopes that Grandfather will be proud of her. She embarks on the thrilling journey and at first it is wonderful, but just as she is about to reach the moon, her journey takes an unexpected turn.
Written by Stéphanie Lapointe and beautifully illustrated by Rogé, this imaginative graphic novel explores intergenerational relationships, love, death, dreams and illusions.
100 pages, Hardcover
First published September 24, 2015
About the author
Stéphanie Lapointe
17 books23 followersStéphanie Lapointe is a singer and actress who has produced three solo albums and is involved in various television, theater, and film productions. She has co-directed several documentaries abroad for Radio Canada International and Care Canada. She is also the author of the young adult novel Victoria. Stéphanie lives in Montreal.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
February 20, 2017
“Flummox” is a good word. Very descriptive. It sounds like it defines. Some people are flummoxed constantly. Others are stoic non-flummoxers. I’m somewhere in-between on the flummox-spectrum scale. In life, I flummox occasionally but in books I’m generally quite stoic. That’s why, when I meet an appropriately flummox-ish title I grab and review it immediately. My reviews are predicated entirely on having something to say and a book chock-full o’ flummox certainly fits the bill. Take today’s example: Grandfather and the Moon by “Stéphanie Lapointe”. Since I received an early review copy from the publisher I opened up what I assumed to be a picture book, or maybe an early chapter book, and found myself reading a little publication note with a suggested age range of 9-12. Say what now? Ah. Must be one of those serious books for older children. Maybe it would even have some illustrated novel aspects. In a single lunchtime I sat down and read it cover to cover. Then I just sat there, my half-eaten apple rocking morosely on my plate. That . . . that . . . It was total flummoxication. I’ve recovered sufficiently since there, but I have to tell you that this is not your normal, average, everyday, please everyone, children’s book. No, this is a book that might be a picture book, might be a middle grade short novel, might be for young adults, and could certainly be for adults as well. The best I can say is that it’s a short story, illustrated. And that you’ll never read anything quite like it this year.
“Grandfather was a man of few words . . . It’s so easy not to notice a man of few words.” His granddaughter remembers him well. She remembers how much he loved his partner Lucille and that when she died he wasn’t quite in the real world anymore. He’d sleep all the time, and speak even less often than he used to. Hoping to engage his interest his granddaughter tells him that she has won the highly desirable Who Will Go to the Moon Contest. Many entered but she actually won! It’s hard to say how much he hears, though, and when she finds herself in space she begins to think of all the animals that came before her. So she ejects from the ship. Why? Well, as she puts it, what do you do, “when someone wanted to give you the moon and you didn’t take it”?
I’m trying to pinpoint precisely where I went wrong with this book and I think a lot of it just comes down to thwarted expectations. When I began the book I was hoodwinked by Lapointe’s careful examination of her grandfather’s heart. It had all the trappings of explaining what happens when a family member suffers an awful grief. And while the protagonist is a child, I could understand how in many ways the book might opt to simply use her as an outside observer while the true focus became the grandfather’s journey back to life, as it were. Children’s books have done this before, to mixed results. Sometimes I think the only time a book for kids can even be written about adults is if the book is about a grandparent as seen through a kid’s eyes. (Or if the book is about adult fuzzy animals, but that’s neither here nor there). Lapointe, however, has no interest in this cut and dried narrative. That’s why, halfway through the book, the book takes what, to me, felt like a sharp right turn. It gave us the moon.
This is how Lapointe introduces the moon element: “I thought it would make him proud when I told him that I’d been chosen for the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest.” And I admit that at first I thought the main character was joking. Yeah, right. A trip to the moon. Pull the other one. But then she started talking about waiting in line to win the ticket to be the first civilian to go to the moon in person. And around the time she started discussing the individual reasons for why they might want to take such a trip I actually had to force myself to understand that I was reading a work of fiction. I don’t think a kid would have a problem with the leap in logic the story takes. It was my adult mind with all its built-in expectations that was flailing about. I was under the impression that this story took place in the realistic present. Now I had to deal with the fact that it was the speculative science fiction past. And then, after I had gotten that far, the book became philosophical.
It’s not a fair comparison but I kept thinking about Italo Calvino’s short story “The Distance of the Moon” after I put the book down. The moon inspires a specific kind of melancholy in some. It’s beautiful, but cold. Distant and airless and it changes with a faithful regularity. Calvino’s story is about the romance of the moon in all its coldness, but upon reflection that’s not the short story this relates best to. That honor instead goes to more than one of Ray Bradbury’s tales of claustrophobia in space. There you see the psychosis and claustrophobia and downright fear that space inspires. Throw in a little of Bowie’s “Major Tom” and you’ve got yourself a story. A story that understands what space travel really is and what it means. After all, as our heroine puts it, the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest is probably called that because it sounds more fun than, “the Who Will or Won’t Like the Silence and the Stars That Aren’t Dead or That Might Be Dead but That Keep Hanging in There Contest.”
It’s hard to review good translations. Not because I feel that translations are less worthy reading than books written in their original language, but because there’s no way to judge how well the translator did unless you too can speak both the language of the original and its interpretation. Repeatedly I was impressed by Lapointe’s language, but I had to wonder how much credit to hand to her. Consider this selection from a moment when Grandfather’s love of his life, Lucille, is dying of cancer:
“But on one of her not-so-good days, when she was at the end of her rope and thirsty and her breath was too short and the rays of sun were too thin in her hospital room that was too white – all those things that pile up and kill hope came and settled in for good, and Lucille passed away.”
It seems to me that you cannot, in good conscience, thank just one person for a passage like that. So please allow me to congratulate both Stephanie Lapointe and Shelley Tanaka, for their excellent work together. Well done! Well done!
The color of this book is the color of melancholy. A lot of grays and browns and the occasional shot of red to wake you up when you begin to drift, like grandfather. For me, the art was most interesting in two very different respects. First, there were the images of normal everyday people. I liked looking at the faces standing behind the rope, waiting in line to see if they'd be the one to win the trip to the moon. The people who appear to cheer our heroine on as she walks in her spacesuit to the launch were marvelous too. There were only about eleven of them (not counting the person chatting at the food truck in the background), some we’d seen waiting in the line before, and none of them overly enthused. That was neat, but my favorite spreads in the book come when our hero ejects herself into space. You’d miss her at first. The stars shine in the firmament and there, lower right corner, she splays out, spread-eagled. Turn the page and you’ve a wordless double spread and she’s even tinier. And for just a moment you truly believe that she’s launched herself into the void never to return. But this is, at its heart, a family story. One could probably even draw a line between the grandfather’s feeling of complete and utter loss and our heroine’s when faced with a different kind of nothingness. In other words, English teachers could have a field day with this one.
Clearly, I was at a loss with the book, but I kind of liked that. I like it when a book for kids (or teens . . . or maybe adults) surprises me out of my complacent stupor for once. So let’s just look at the ending and then get on our way. Is it a happy ending or a sad one? Our heroine lands not far from where her grandfather has parked, asleep. Was he waiting for her? Is it a coincidence? As she says herself, “Hard to say whether it was destiny or chance (you have to know, first of all, which you believe in)”. Do they drive home together? At first it appears that the book is not telling. You see the car on the road, presumably parked. You turn the page and it may or may not have moved but look closely now. You’ll see it. The trees at first appear to be the same around it, but upon closer inspection you can see that two have disappeared. The car is driving. The grandfather was waiting for his granddaughter. Everything is suddenly (I don’t know why) okay. A nice thought.
There are those that will be infuriated by this book. Let them be. There will be libraries that decide pretty quickly that the book is not for them. Fair enough. Others will decide the book will never circulate in their library. They may be right, but it would be worth placing it in the hands of the right reader. The age of that reader? You tell me. This book might be for everybody or it might be for nobody. To my mind, it could be a perfect book discussion group for kids and teens of all ages. You get out of this book what you put into it. It’s literary. Just don’t expect me to tell you how to feel about it.
On shelves May 1st.
“Grandfather was a man of few words . . . It’s so easy not to notice a man of few words.” His granddaughter remembers him well. She remembers how much he loved his partner Lucille and that when she died he wasn’t quite in the real world anymore. He’d sleep all the time, and speak even less often than he used to. Hoping to engage his interest his granddaughter tells him that she has won the highly desirable Who Will Go to the Moon Contest. Many entered but she actually won! It’s hard to say how much he hears, though, and when she finds herself in space she begins to think of all the animals that came before her. So she ejects from the ship. Why? Well, as she puts it, what do you do, “when someone wanted to give you the moon and you didn’t take it”?
I’m trying to pinpoint precisely where I went wrong with this book and I think a lot of it just comes down to thwarted expectations. When I began the book I was hoodwinked by Lapointe’s careful examination of her grandfather’s heart. It had all the trappings of explaining what happens when a family member suffers an awful grief. And while the protagonist is a child, I could understand how in many ways the book might opt to simply use her as an outside observer while the true focus became the grandfather’s journey back to life, as it were. Children’s books have done this before, to mixed results. Sometimes I think the only time a book for kids can even be written about adults is if the book is about a grandparent as seen through a kid’s eyes. (Or if the book is about adult fuzzy animals, but that’s neither here nor there). Lapointe, however, has no interest in this cut and dried narrative. That’s why, halfway through the book, the book takes what, to me, felt like a sharp right turn. It gave us the moon.
This is how Lapointe introduces the moon element: “I thought it would make him proud when I told him that I’d been chosen for the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest.” And I admit that at first I thought the main character was joking. Yeah, right. A trip to the moon. Pull the other one. But then she started talking about waiting in line to win the ticket to be the first civilian to go to the moon in person. And around the time she started discussing the individual reasons for why they might want to take such a trip I actually had to force myself to understand that I was reading a work of fiction. I don’t think a kid would have a problem with the leap in logic the story takes. It was my adult mind with all its built-in expectations that was flailing about. I was under the impression that this story took place in the realistic present. Now I had to deal with the fact that it was the speculative science fiction past. And then, after I had gotten that far, the book became philosophical.
It’s not a fair comparison but I kept thinking about Italo Calvino’s short story “The Distance of the Moon” after I put the book down. The moon inspires a specific kind of melancholy in some. It’s beautiful, but cold. Distant and airless and it changes with a faithful regularity. Calvino’s story is about the romance of the moon in all its coldness, but upon reflection that’s not the short story this relates best to. That honor instead goes to more than one of Ray Bradbury’s tales of claustrophobia in space. There you see the psychosis and claustrophobia and downright fear that space inspires. Throw in a little of Bowie’s “Major Tom” and you’ve got yourself a story. A story that understands what space travel really is and what it means. After all, as our heroine puts it, the Who Will Go to the Moon Contest is probably called that because it sounds more fun than, “the Who Will or Won’t Like the Silence and the Stars That Aren’t Dead or That Might Be Dead but That Keep Hanging in There Contest.”
It’s hard to review good translations. Not because I feel that translations are less worthy reading than books written in their original language, but because there’s no way to judge how well the translator did unless you too can speak both the language of the original and its interpretation. Repeatedly I was impressed by Lapointe’s language, but I had to wonder how much credit to hand to her. Consider this selection from a moment when Grandfather’s love of his life, Lucille, is dying of cancer:
“But on one of her not-so-good days, when she was at the end of her rope and thirsty and her breath was too short and the rays of sun were too thin in her hospital room that was too white – all those things that pile up and kill hope came and settled in for good, and Lucille passed away.”
It seems to me that you cannot, in good conscience, thank just one person for a passage like that. So please allow me to congratulate both Stephanie Lapointe and Shelley Tanaka, for their excellent work together. Well done! Well done!
The color of this book is the color of melancholy. A lot of grays and browns and the occasional shot of red to wake you up when you begin to drift, like grandfather. For me, the art was most interesting in two very different respects. First, there were the images of normal everyday people. I liked looking at the faces standing behind the rope, waiting in line to see if they'd be the one to win the trip to the moon. The people who appear to cheer our heroine on as she walks in her spacesuit to the launch were marvelous too. There were only about eleven of them (not counting the person chatting at the food truck in the background), some we’d seen waiting in the line before, and none of them overly enthused. That was neat, but my favorite spreads in the book come when our hero ejects herself into space. You’d miss her at first. The stars shine in the firmament and there, lower right corner, she splays out, spread-eagled. Turn the page and you’ve a wordless double spread and she’s even tinier. And for just a moment you truly believe that she’s launched herself into the void never to return. But this is, at its heart, a family story. One could probably even draw a line between the grandfather’s feeling of complete and utter loss and our heroine’s when faced with a different kind of nothingness. In other words, English teachers could have a field day with this one.
Clearly, I was at a loss with the book, but I kind of liked that. I like it when a book for kids (or teens . . . or maybe adults) surprises me out of my complacent stupor for once. So let’s just look at the ending and then get on our way. Is it a happy ending or a sad one? Our heroine lands not far from where her grandfather has parked, asleep. Was he waiting for her? Is it a coincidence? As she says herself, “Hard to say whether it was destiny or chance (you have to know, first of all, which you believe in)”. Do they drive home together? At first it appears that the book is not telling. You see the car on the road, presumably parked. You turn the page and it may or may not have moved but look closely now. You’ll see it. The trees at first appear to be the same around it, but upon closer inspection you can see that two have disappeared. The car is driving. The grandfather was waiting for his granddaughter. Everything is suddenly (I don’t know why) okay. A nice thought.
There are those that will be infuriated by this book. Let them be. There will be libraries that decide pretty quickly that the book is not for them. Fair enough. Others will decide the book will never circulate in their library. They may be right, but it would be worth placing it in the hands of the right reader. The age of that reader? You tell me. This book might be for everybody or it might be for nobody. To my mind, it could be a perfect book discussion group for kids and teens of all ages. You get out of this book what you put into it. It’s literary. Just don’t expect me to tell you how to feel about it.
On shelves May 1st.
August 17, 2018
An odd story / graphic novel about a girl and her relationship with her widower grandfather. And then, she just randomly goes to space by herself. There may have been a metaphor I missed, so the why was lost on me. I liked the mood of this one, and the artwork, but a little more polish in the story was needed for me.
2.5 stars
*Women In Translation month 2018
2.5 stars
*Women In Translation month 2018
December 6, 2015
Quel beau conte ... pour adultes . J'ai été surpris pas la poésie du texte de Stéphanie Lapointe et , comme toujours, par les dessins créatifs et sensibles de Rogé ! À partager tout de même , avec les petits et grands ...
September 24, 2019
“Life passed through Grandfather
like one long breath.
Warm,
and slow.”
I like unconventional picture books, and this is (kind of) one. Meaning: It's shaped like a picture book, it's illustrated, but with a closer look it's really more of a longer illustrated children's story, with more words, and without the clear and specific audience that is usually associated with picture books. All ages might be better as a descriptor of the intended audience.
But I can see why it won an award, because when the award committee was looking at it against the pile of other books, they knew just what to do with all the other ones, and they were confused this one, but they couldn't help thinking about it. This on one level is about the relationship between a girl and her quiet grandfather, who loses the love of his life, his wife, and falls into depression (and gets even quieter). The girl, whom he cals Mar-Mar, goes another direction: She enters a contest to go to the moon, and it appears she wins the contest and appears to head there. I guess the point is: Life is short, live it.
But did it really happen, this trip toward the moon? At one point she self-ejects? Why? At one point Mar-Mar admits her journey might be fantasy:
"So while everyone was arguing
about whether the story was true or not. . ."
And it ends without the conventional clear Moral for Children, but with Grandpa asleep (again) in his old car the shape of a box of soap. It's an ending like much of literary fiction, unresolved. This is a story that (deliberately) invites all sorts questions instead of giving answers. It invites arguments and reflections about what really happens and about depression and grief and family and the need for imagination and adventure.
This will divide the picture book/children's book Dewey decimal what-shelf-do-I-put-it-on crowd, and I get that, but I kinda love it. Oh, and I loved Roge's lovely, muted, spacious watercolor illustrations, which sets the tone for all the reflection and feels.
like one long breath.
Warm,
and slow.”
I like unconventional picture books, and this is (kind of) one. Meaning: It's shaped like a picture book, it's illustrated, but with a closer look it's really more of a longer illustrated children's story, with more words, and without the clear and specific audience that is usually associated with picture books. All ages might be better as a descriptor of the intended audience.
But I can see why it won an award, because when the award committee was looking at it against the pile of other books, they knew just what to do with all the other ones, and they were confused this one, but they couldn't help thinking about it. This on one level is about the relationship between a girl and her quiet grandfather, who loses the love of his life, his wife, and falls into depression (and gets even quieter). The girl, whom he cals Mar-Mar, goes another direction: She enters a contest to go to the moon, and it appears she wins the contest and appears to head there. I guess the point is: Life is short, live it.
But did it really happen, this trip toward the moon? At one point she self-ejects? Why? At one point Mar-Mar admits her journey might be fantasy:
"So while everyone was arguing
about whether the story was true or not. . ."
And it ends without the conventional clear Moral for Children, but with Grandpa asleep (again) in his old car the shape of a box of soap. It's an ending like much of literary fiction, unresolved. This is a story that (deliberately) invites all sorts questions instead of giving answers. It invites arguments and reflections about what really happens and about depression and grief and family and the need for imagination and adventure.
This will divide the picture book/children's book Dewey decimal what-shelf-do-I-put-it-on crowd, and I get that, but I kinda love it. Oh, and I loved Roge's lovely, muted, spacious watercolor illustrations, which sets the tone for all the reflection and feels.
August 15, 2020
This short graphic novel is the author’s recollection of her grandfather. When the author’s grandmother passes away due to cancer, her grandfather falls into a depression, sleeping often and rarely talking. In an attempt to make him proud of her, his granddaughter enters a competition to go to the moon - an adventure of a lifetime. This adventure, however, takes a surprising turn.
To be honest, I think my expectations were so high for this book that it ruined the experience for me. The blurb on the back made me think it would be much more profound than it actually was, would maybe even make me cry. But it wasn’t, and it didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a bad reading experience. It was well written, the artwork was absolutely beautiful, and it’s a sweet snapshot of a girl’s relationship with her grandfather. However, it just fell flat for me based on what I was expecting it to be like.
I will say, I’ll probably be thinking about this one for a while, trying to interpret what the author was trying to get across. I have a feeling there’s a deeper meaning that I’m missing, and perhaps when I understand, I’ll feel more satisfied.
To be honest, I think my expectations were so high for this book that it ruined the experience for me. The blurb on the back made me think it would be much more profound than it actually was, would maybe even make me cry. But it wasn’t, and it didn’t. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a bad reading experience. It was well written, the artwork was absolutely beautiful, and it’s a sweet snapshot of a girl’s relationship with her grandfather. However, it just fell flat for me based on what I was expecting it to be like.
I will say, I’ll probably be thinking about this one for a while, trying to interpret what the author was trying to get across. I have a feeling there’s a deeper meaning that I’m missing, and perhaps when I understand, I’ll feel more satisfied.
June 28, 2017
Grandfather and the Moon is considered a children's book, but really I think you get the most out of it as an adult. It starts off as a child's reflection on her grandfather and his depression after the death of his wife. But it quickly turns from what you would expect when the granddaughter starts talking about a contest that she won. She gets to go to the moon and she hopes that this will perk up her grandfather. However, just before she arrives, she ejects herself. According to the author, the book is meant to address the nature of growth and journeys, and how sometimes our goals turn out not to be what we want.
This is an odd book. It's got beautiful illustrations and looks like a children's novel, but I feel like I need to sit with it for longer to get a true sense of what was going on.
This is an odd book. It's got beautiful illustrations and looks like a children's novel, but I feel like I need to sit with it for longer to get a true sense of what was going on.
March 19, 2017
Doux roman graphique aux illustrations apaisantes.
Un grand-papa perd sa femme qu’il aime tant et il a du mal à se remettre de cette perte. Ensuite, on suit sa petite fille, qui souhaite le rendre fier en lui apprenant qu’elle ira sur la lune (elle a gagné un concours).
J’avais l’impression de lire deux récits différents, avec comme seul (vague) fil conducteur la tristesse du grand-papa. J’ai beaucoup beaucoup été touchée par la première partie et j’ai eu le coeur gros pendant la lecture. J’ai toutefois eu l’impression qu’il manquait une fin, un retour sur la grand-maman, peut-être. Quelque chose permettant de contenir les deux événements (la mort + la lune) dans un même récit.
Cela étant dit, j’ai beaucoup apprécié l’écriture simple, naïve, parfois poétique.
Un grand-papa perd sa femme qu’il aime tant et il a du mal à se remettre de cette perte. Ensuite, on suit sa petite fille, qui souhaite le rendre fier en lui apprenant qu’elle ira sur la lune (elle a gagné un concours).
J’avais l’impression de lire deux récits différents, avec comme seul (vague) fil conducteur la tristesse du grand-papa. J’ai beaucoup beaucoup été touchée par la première partie et j’ai eu le coeur gros pendant la lecture. J’ai toutefois eu l’impression qu’il manquait une fin, un retour sur la grand-maman, peut-être. Quelque chose permettant de contenir les deux événements (la mort + la lune) dans un même récit.
Cela étant dit, j’ai beaucoup apprécié l’écriture simple, naïve, parfois poétique.
August 22, 2021
3 1/2
J'ai trouvé cet album absolument magnifique. Les illustrations sont sobres, mais absolument sublimes. J'aurais assurément besoin d'une deuxième, même troisième lecture pour saisir tout le sens de ce récit. Je suis certaine qu'à l'instar du petit prince, j'en saisirai de nouvelles nuances chaque fois.
J'ai trouvé cet album absolument magnifique. Les illustrations sont sobres, mais absolument sublimes. J'aurais assurément besoin d'une deuxième, même troisième lecture pour saisir tout le sens de ce récit. Je suis certaine qu'à l'instar du petit prince, j'en saisirai de nouvelles nuances chaque fois.
May 23, 2017
This is a book that kidney punches you and then steals your dog. Which is why I liked it so much.
September 26, 2019
Good illustrations. Told from the point of view of the adventurous child, who has thoughtful memories of her grandparents, including their limitations.
January 5, 2021
Il s’agit d’un roman graphique très émouvant. Je me suis particulièrement attachée au grand-père, peut-être parce qu’il représente tellement bien son statut. L’histoire était touchante. J’ai adoré les illustrations. Elles étaient originales et j’aimais bien prendre le temps des les apprécier. J’y trouvais parfois des petits détails vraiment originaux et intéressants. Le seul hic, c’est que j’ai eu de la difficulté à saisir vraiment le sens du voyage dans l’espace. Je n’arrivais pas à comprendre la métaphore. J’ai dû aller lire des entrevues avec l’autrice pour valider ma compréhension. Néanmoins, je crois qu’il s’agit d’une magnifique oeuvre qui pourrait assurément être exploitée en profondeur au 2e cycle du secondaire.
February 15, 2019
3.5 ⭐️ | Beau, touchant. Un conte pour adultes sur le temps qui passe, qui s’effrite, qui disparaît. Une lecture qui ne me marque pas ceci dit.
On ressent beaucoup le vide, de par les (superbes) illustrations de Rogé (que j’adore). :)
On ressent beaucoup le vide, de par les (superbes) illustrations de Rogé (que j’adore). :)
September 10, 2019
أشعر بكلّ ما خُطّ في هذا الكتاب، من أحرفٍ وخطوط.. أشعر بها..
مؤلمة بهدوء..
قرأت المسودة العربية قبل طباعة القصة، مع الفُلك..
مؤلمة بهدوء..
قرأت المسودة العربية قبل طباعة القصة، مع الفُلك..
April 1, 2022
من السهلِ جدًا ألّا ننتبه الى شخصٍ لا يتحدثُ كثيرًا.
October 12, 2022
J'pense que je suis un peu cruche, j'ai pas trop compris où l'autrice voulait nous amener avec son livre...Les images étaient belles et simples!
October 21, 2020
This lengthy book kept me on the edge of my seat while I was reading it. After the turn of each page I was not sure where it was going to go but the story always took a turn that I never expected it to. I think that hard topics like the ones explained in this book are important for children's literature because this is something that everyone goes through, including children. This book accurately shows what grief looks like and sheds light on a topic that most do not want to talk about with their children.
February 11, 2022
Une petite douceur….
May 18, 2022
Maybe a little lofty for my students, but they deserve art! I look forward to seeing what they think of this short, sweet, thoughtful story next year
May 20, 2021
لَعَلَّ الْحُزْنَ لفُقْدانِها بسرعةٍ كبيرةٍ جدًا
هو الذَّي منحَهُ الرَّغبةَ في أَنْ يصمُتَ
لَعَلَّ الْقُصورَ في فِهْمِهِ
هو الذَّي تحوَّلَ إلى فَراغٍ
كَما عَجْزٍ في القلبِ.
كَما جدَارٍ بينَهُ
وبينَ الْحَياةِ الَّتي كانَ
ليَحْيَاها بِصُحْبَتها💔.
هو الذَّي منحَهُ الرَّغبةَ في أَنْ يصمُتَ
لَعَلَّ الْقُصورَ في فِهْمِهِ
هو الذَّي تحوَّلَ إلى فَراغٍ
كَما عَجْزٍ في القلبِ.
كَما جدَارٍ بينَهُ
وبينَ الْحَياةِ الَّتي كانَ
ليَحْيَاها بِصُحْبَتها💔.
March 4, 2017
Featuring soft mixed media illustrations, this graphic novel gently explores a girl's memories of her beloved grandfather, Adrian, "a man of few words" (unpaged). The two share a special bond, but after his wife dies, Adrian seems to lose interest in the world around him. Because of his interest in the moon, the narrator enters and wins a trip to the moon, but then she has second thoughts after the launch and ejects herself, landing in a field where Adrian is waiting, asleep, in his car to take her home or wherever she wants to go. The story is beautifully told and the translation is simply exquisite and moving as the narrator ruminates on life's possibilities and even the unfairness of humans getting all the credit for space travel when the true pioneers were monkeys, a cat, a dog, and mice. It all left me thinking as the poignancy of Adrian's feelings and the narrator's bond with this man who meant so much to her are described. It's hard to keep remembering that Adrian has died, something readers know from the very first page of the story. Although the impossibility of a girl like her being allowed to go to the moon with little preparation is clear, it's still interesting to imagine as well as how she has the choice to leave the craft. Those other, nonhuman animals didn't.
April 26, 2018
I'm not sure what I just read or how I feel about it. But "feel" is about the only word that accurately describes what's going on for me right now. It was almost as breathtaking as the view of earth from outer space must be like, unless this book itself is the lyrical equivalent. I'm not sure who it's for, either. It's been reviewed in all the major journals as a children's book, but I don't know many children who could appreciate this fully. That said, the few that do will appreciate it oh so much.
March 24, 2019
J'y ai vu quelques qualités... Mais dans l'ensemble, je n'ai pas saisi le message de cet album. S'agit-il d'un album jeunesse ou d'un roman graphique étant un peu hybride? Dans le même genre par exemple que "Jane, le Renard et Moi" ou "Louis parmi les spectres"?
J'ai adoré l'écriture de Stéphanie Lapointe pour sa série Fanny Cloutier illustrée par Marianne Ferrer. Mais je dois avouer que "Grand-Père et la Lune" ainsi que "Jack et le temps perdu" me laisse confuse et sur ma faim... Si quelqu'un les as particulièrement aimé pour une raison ou une autre, je serais ravie de savoir pourquoi :)
J'ai adoré l'écriture de Stéphanie Lapointe pour sa série Fanny Cloutier illustrée par Marianne Ferrer. Mais je dois avouer que "Grand-Père et la Lune" ainsi que "Jack et le temps perdu" me laisse confuse et sur ma faim... Si quelqu'un les as particulièrement aimé pour une raison ou une autre, je serais ravie de savoir pourquoi :)
November 22, 2015
Plutôt 3.5*, mettons.
October 18, 2017
This is NOT a child’s picture book, even though it’s short enough to read over lunch. I would call it an illustrated book, although I know some people are calling it a graphic. The illustrations are touching, very moody and evocative. I felt the loneliness through the illustrations even without reading the text.
The story is told by a grand-daughter about her grandfather, Adrien, after his funeral. They were very close. Adrien is a man of few words, even fewer words after the death of his beloved wife. In fact, the grand-daughter feels like a piece of her beloved grandfather died along with his wife. She wants so desperately to make him proud, for him to notice her again. When she wins a trip to the moon, she is sure that when she returns all will be as it used to be. But the journey doesn’t go as expected.
This quirky book will not appeal to everyone. It’s definitely moody, dealing with dreams and death, depression and grief, love and unattainable goals. Even the pictures are soft and melancholy. But there is also discovery and understanding to be found and I would be surprised if it didn’t keep you thinking for quite some time after you finished it
The story is told by a grand-daughter about her grandfather, Adrien, after his funeral. They were very close. Adrien is a man of few words, even fewer words after the death of his beloved wife. In fact, the grand-daughter feels like a piece of her beloved grandfather died along with his wife. She wants so desperately to make him proud, for him to notice her again. When she wins a trip to the moon, she is sure that when she returns all will be as it used to be. But the journey doesn’t go as expected.
This quirky book will not appeal to everyone. It’s definitely moody, dealing with dreams and death, depression and grief, love and unattainable goals. Even the pictures are soft and melancholy. But there is also discovery and understanding to be found and I would be surprised if it didn’t keep you thinking for quite some time after you finished it
May 22, 2021
The good: The Artwork.
I loved it. So unique and simple with a clear perspective.
The decent: The Story.
The girl and her grandfather both feel a sense of being lost for different reasons. Loved seeing how the girl's experience made her understand her father in a very real way. Also, seeing the grandfather always falling asleep made me smile as my Father, who is a grandfather, falls asleep at the drop of a hat.
The bad: The Story.
Okay, I know this doesn't make sense, since I just said the story was decent...but, sometimes stories try so hard to be clever that they're just confusing. What I got from the story came to me days later as I wondered, "What did I just read?".
Simplicity speaks the greatest truth and sometimes the truth can get lost when it's hidden behind confusing allegories.
I expected more from the book and was left a bit disappointed.
I loved it. So unique and simple with a clear perspective.
The decent: The Story.
The girl and her grandfather both feel a sense of being lost for different reasons. Loved seeing how the girl's experience made her understand her father in a very real way. Also, seeing the grandfather always falling asleep made me smile as my Father, who is a grandfather, falls asleep at the drop of a hat.
The bad: The Story.
Okay, I know this doesn't make sense, since I just said the story was decent...but, sometimes stories try so hard to be clever that they're just confusing. What I got from the story came to me days later as I wondered, "What did I just read?".
Simplicity speaks the greatest truth and sometimes the truth can get lost when it's hidden behind confusing allegories.
I expected more from the book and was left a bit disappointed.
July 26, 2017
I just didn't get it.
It started out so beautifully. A girl. Her grieving grandfather. I was completely on board. The illustrations were lovely. The text addressed grief gloriously.
And then the grandfather kept falling asleep. That's all good. It happens to the best grandfathers. And it *seemed* to be his response to grief. But I kind of couldn't tell. Had he been sleeping all this time?
But the moon is where I really got lost. The story is marketed as memoir, so the moon is real, right? Right...? Maybe instead of memoir, they meant metaphor. Maybe...?
So I give the book three stars because parts of it I liked. I'd give myself only two stars for this book, 'cause I only did okay at understanding it.
It started out so beautifully. A girl. Her grieving grandfather. I was completely on board. The illustrations were lovely. The text addressed grief gloriously.
And then the grandfather kept falling asleep. That's all good. It happens to the best grandfathers. And it *seemed* to be his response to grief. But I kind of couldn't tell. Had he been sleeping all this time?
But the moon is where I really got lost. The story is marketed as memoir, so the moon is real, right? Right...? Maybe instead of memoir, they meant metaphor. Maybe...?
So I give the book three stars because parts of it I liked. I'd give myself only two stars for this book, 'cause I only did okay at understanding it.
March 8, 2026
Went into this one knowing nothing about it; picked it up at a library book sale six months ago just because it looked cool and I’m a bit of a space nerd. Having finished it finally, I…still feel like I know nothing about it. It’s one that I think I’ll need to read again, straight through this time (I actually started it the day I brought it home but then lost it under a pile of stuff on my night stand and completely forgot its existence entirely until tonight).
Anyway, what I can say is that I loved the feel of the writing, the art is beautiful and melancholy, and the story requires some thought. What I mean by that is that I think I’m going to have to work a bit to find the meaning. It’s there, but it’s not said outright, you know? I love stories like that.
Anyway, what I can say is that I loved the feel of the writing, the art is beautiful and melancholy, and the story requires some thought. What I mean by that is that I think I’m going to have to work a bit to find the meaning. It’s there, but it’s not said outright, you know? I love stories like that.
March 19, 2017
The illustration of this book was beautiful and so was the translation. It's hard to describe this book- it is a graphic novel of sorts, but it is also a picture book. It perfectly describes the relationship of the grandfather and the grandaughter and I found myself forgetting the grandfather had died. (It is revealed on the first page but not mentioned again.) I almost forgot this was a work of fiction until it got to the part of the grandaughter going to the moon. I really, thoroughly enjoyed this book, and although I was a little lost at the end, it was not a bad thing.
July 17, 2018
Sweet melancholy. A young woman reflects on her relationship with her Grandfather after the passing of her Grandmother. "It's so easy not to notice a man of few words." The text and illustration are almost quiet, like the Grandfather himself. This perfect duo invites you to be a part of a very intimate relationship. Towards the end, tho, somehow this story seems to lose it's course. It goes a bit bizarro in a way that doesn't quite fit with the rest of the story. Not a huge deal, but I found it distracting. Otherwise it's a lovely little gem.
September 15, 2019
This was a beautiful grief graphic novel. It dealt with disappointing family, suicidal thoughts, depression, and love. Honestly I was surprised my library shelved it under the children's section - but I shouldn't have been. Seeing that this won many awards for young people's literature, I think it's great that people are finding this and connecting to it. It makes sense, it is a coming-of-age story. Regardless of shelving in a library, this is a beautiful graphic novel and should be passed along.
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