The Treasure Box

This closely observed portrait of a shared bond between a grandparent and grandchild explores love and loss. The brown-skinned grandchild, who wears a long dark braid, narrates, describing the treasures she's found that she'll share with her grandfather, small objects that others might dismiss: "A very round and very smooth rock./ A green parachute guy who lost his parachute./ A suit of dried-up skin a snake left behind." After visiting with the child's parents, the grandfather inspects the new finds: "I make him hold the snake skin, / even though he doesn't want to./ He makes the funniest faces," reads an intimate aside. Digital illustrations by Bell (Our Favorite Day of the Year) show the child stretched out in a fit of laughter, completely relaxed; Grandpa looks comically uneasy in his glasses and woolly socks. After Grandpa gets sick, he remains able to see treasures ("Grandpa has tubes in his nose, but he can still make funny faces"). When he dies, Keane (Who Wants a Tortoise?) expresses the child's grief with restraint--the memorial service is "a sad party you have when someone dies"--and the loss slowly leads to someone new to share treasure with. Keane writes with sensitivity and deep feeling, and Bell's images give the story freshness and immediacy. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. Illustrator's agent: Christy T. Ewers, the CAT Agency. (Jan.)

Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

K-Gr 3--This touching story depicts a young girl's coming to terms with her sadness at the loss of her beloved grandfather as she discovers her memories of him are treasures of the heart. Unfolding in a first-person narrative are the joyful moments the girl shares with her grandfather as they hunt for small gifts of nature; Keane takes care to show readers that the young girl reconciles with her subsequent grief by opening up to her grandmother about her memories, with her collection of found objects now acting as touchstones. The simple sentence structures and easy vocabulary make the story's purpose accessible to independent elementary readers, whether or not they can relate to family loss. Bell's detailed illustrations ground and complement the story phrases, as every element described is featured for comfortable visual context. Most notably, the remarkably intricate, handmade textures fill the characters and scenes with a unique tangibility, reflecting how meaningful and impressionable the times shared with loved ones are. VERDICT Though not an essential purchase, this heartfelt story about the loss of a beloved grandparent plainly names the emotions felt by a grieving young child and seeks to reassure children that family memories can be forever cherished.--Rachel Mulligan, Westampton, NJ

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

This closely observed portrait of a shared bond between a grandparent and grandchild explores love and loss. . . When he dies, Keane (Who Wants a Tortoise?) expresses the child's grief with restraint—the memorial service is "a sad party you have when someone dies"—and the loss slowly leads to someone new to share treasure with. Keane writes with sensitivity and deep feeling, and Bell's images give the story freshness and immediacy. —Publishers Weekly

A forthright, genuinely kid-centered look not just at the death of a loved one but also the pain of watching them becoming increasingly ill. The girl's simple, observant narration strips the artifice and platitudes from the experience ('I go with Mommy and Daddy to Grandpa's memorial, which is a sad party you have when someone dies'), a welcome reprieve to grieving youngsters tired of adults' euphemisms about death and sadness. —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

This touching story depicts a young girl's coming to terms with her sadness at the loss of her beloved grandfather as she discovers her memories of him are treasures of the heart. . . The remarkably intricate, handmade textures fill the characters and scenes with a unique tangibility, reflecting how meaningful and impressionable the times shared with loved ones are. —School Library Journal