Keepers - Softcover

Jeri Hanel Watts

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1584300132 ISBN 13: 9781584300137

Publisher: Lee & Low Books, 2013

Synopsis

Kenyon loves to listen to his grandmother's stories almost as much as he loves to play baseball. He'd like Little Dolly to designate him the next Keeper of the family lore, but she tells him the honor is reserved for girls. Setting out to buy a 90th birthday gift for Little Dolly, Kenyon instead falls for a new baseball glove for himself. As regret weighs down his heart, he confides his shame to his father, who tells him that you can only learn from your mistakes. Just when Kenyon thinks he's run out of ideas for Little Dolly's gift, inspiration hits.

About this title

From School Library Journal:

Grade 2-4?Kenyon lives with his widowed father and his grandmother, Little Dolly. She is a Keeper, a female member of the family who "holds on to the past until she can pass it on to the next." Kenyon loves her, her stories, and baseball. His love of the game provides the impetus for the story. Little Dolly's 90th birthday is approaching and Kenyon has saved his money to buy her a gift. Before he can make a decision about it, however, he sees the perfect baseball glove?and he buys it. Now he must grapple with his conscience, and with not having a present for Little Dolly. His father's words are comforting, but they do not erase the boy's guilt. Precocious children may guess what he decides to give his grandmother (the illustrations give the best clues)?a handmade book of her stories?but nothing distracts from the celebration. In fact, when the woman receives her gift, she decides that Kenyon can become a Keeper. The bright, acrylic illustrations, most of them full-page, take readers through the house, the small shops on Main street, and other parts of the neighborhood, to the story's ending on the family's porch. The characters are African Americans, and Little Dolly explains that the Keeper tradition goes back to Africa, but the book's theme of the loving, giving, and sharing between grandparent and child is universal. A warm, touching story.?Marie Wright, University Library, Indianapolis, IN
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews:

As in Naturi Thomas's Uh-oh! It's Mama's Birthday (p. 388), a boy's good intentions are at the center of this oft-used plot of a youth who sets off to buy a gift, only to purchase something for himself instead. Kenyon finds himself in a dilemma after spending the money for his grandmother's 90th birthday gift on a new baseball glove. Realizing his mistake, he thinks hard about giving Little Dolly something that does not cost money, and puts together a book of his grandmother's much vaunted stories (none of which are recounted here). In doing so, he becomes the next ``Keeper'' of tales, an honor usually reserved for women in the family. Learning from one's mistakes is the message; readers will have to overlook the fact that the baseball-loving Kenyon gains the coveted mitt for himself in the process. The acrylic illustrations are reminiscent of James Ransome's early work; some awkward perspectives detract from the mostly effective compositions, but one scene--an aerial view of Kenyon stretched out on the floor on his stomach, the marshmallow undersides of his sneakers exposed--is quite unique. (Picture book. 5-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Lee & Low Books
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1584300132
• ISBN 13: 9781584300137
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Felicia Marshall