Tx Gundula - I've requested this from ILL; it does look enchanting. Ok, I've read it. I absolutely love it! Tears came to my eyes. And I do believe children would enjoy it just as much as teachers, librarians, and parents do. I like how it's sentimental, but most assuredly not saccharine. Kinda funny though - I personally would like to live at Forest View and let someone else do the cooking, even if I did have to accept lima beans twice a week. ( )

Emily and her mother helped Oma move into a retirement home but Oma has trouble adjusting. As Emily and her mother sort through Oma's old things from her house, they find old clothes belonging to Oma, Opa, Emily and her mother. Emily suggests they make a quilt for Oma from the old clothes.

When Emily's Oma, her grandmother, must move from her house on Maple Street, where she has lived for most of her life, to a retirement home, the older woman is far from happy. She misses her old house, her old neighbors - like Mrs. Mostowyk, who used to wave to her every morning - and many of her old possessions, which cannot be kept in her new single-room residence. Emily, a sensitive youngster who is attuned to her beloved Oma's moods, conceives of a plan to help her grandmother adjust, and to show her that the really important things - her memories, her sense of belonging - can still be hers. And so she and her mother set out to make Oma a very special quilt...

Chosen as one of our September selections, over in the Picture-Book Club to which I belong, where our theme this month is 'grandparents,' Oma's Quilt is an excellent exploration of an experience that many children share: seeing a grandparent moving into some kind of retirement home or assisted living situation. Told with compassion, the narrative is perfectly complemented by Stéphane Jorisch's lovely mixed media illustrations, which have a distinctive and quirky sensibility all their own. Highly recommended to anyone looking for quality children's stories featuring grandparents and grandchildren! ( )

[b:Oma's Quilt|281224|Oma's Quilt|Paulette Bourgeois|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1173387188s/281224.jpg|272811], written by Paulette Bourgeois, with illustrations by Stéphane Jorisch, touched me deeply. Both text and illustrations are poignant and evocative, and I think this heartwarming and heartbreaking story of Oma's (grandma's) reluctant move from a house to an assisted living retirement residence will likely strike an emotional chord with many children and adults, especially those who have had to face or are currently facing a similar situation within their own families.

Oma's new domicile, Forest View Retirement Home, is described as a charming, beautiful place, with attractive rooms and gardens. However, to Oma, who has lived in her house on Maple Street for most of her life, it is simply not home, it is strange and unnerving. Some reviews of [b:Oma's Quilt|281224|Oma's Quilt|Paulette Bourgeois|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1173387188s/281224.jpg|272811] on Amazon complain that Oma's moodiness and her refusal to be more accepting of her new surroundings are a bit annoying. Well, Oma's constant bad mood and stubbornness might be somewhat problematic, but one has to realise that being forced to move from a house where you made the decisions, where you were "boss" to a retirement or nursing home where many if not most decisions are now being made not by you, but for you, might easily result in feelings sadness, of resentment at no longer being independent, of anger at everyone and everything.

Oma's memories are tied to her house on Maple Street and to the many objects she has collected (maybe even hoarded) over the years. Of course, Oma's room at the retirement residence is not large enough for her to be able to keep most of her collected keepsakes, so that particular fact is without a doubt one of the main reasons for her moodiness, her sadness; she feels as though she has lost her memories, her sense of belonging. That is why Emily's idea of making a quilt for her grandmother out of some of her many keepsakes is such a wonderful, thoughtful and ingenious idea. Not only does this memory quilt allow Oma to keep some of her many collected treasures near her, a quilt is also such a comforting, soothing object (being wrapped in a quilt made of memories would be like being surrounded, being embraced by them). And how sweet and poignant that it is Emily, the little granddaughter, who has the idea of making a memory quilt for Oma. This is not only a tribute to Emily's imagination and ingenuity, it also demonstrates that children can be of vital assistance to their parents in difficult, stressful times.

The quilt Emily and her mother make form the fabric of collected memories helps to ease Oma's pain, helps her to adjust to Forest View Retirement Home, although it does not (and I appreciate that honesty) suddenly transform Oma's moodiness and resentment. But it does make life at Forest view more acceptable, more tolerable for her. And by extension, the quilt also helps to somewhat ease Emily's and Emily's mother's worry and concern for Oma. The quilt provides solace and hope; it is made of love and represents both love and memories.

As much as I enjoyed and was moved by Paulette Bourgeois' narrative, and as much as I could relate to both Oma's frustrations and her daughter's (Emily's mother's) worry, sadness and probable feelings of guilt at having to move her clearly reluctant mother into a retirement home, I also felt that she was somewhat clueless and insensitive at times. Oma has clearly always loved to cook, to do housework, so for Emily's mother to make a comment about Oma not needing to cook anymore now, was really not the most sensitive, the most helpful thing to say. I actually found that Emily often seemed to understand her grandmother's feelings somewhat better, and although I could easily empathise with the mother's difficulties and realised that she was trying to do her best in a difficult situation, I did wish that she had been a bit less insensitive with some of her comments.

Stéphane Jorisch's colourful illustrations work beautifully in this story, evocatively reflecting the emotions, the feelings of the characters. Oma, hunched in her chair, calling the other residents "nincompoops" looks supremely curmudgeonly, a cantankerous grandmother par excellence. Her daughter's facial expression as she and Emily are on their way home after getting Oma "settled" in her new room, also clearly and evocatively show how worried and sad she is; both text and image show that she is about to cry. My favourite illustration though, is the two-page spread of a much happier Oma, telling her daughter and her granddaughter stories about the many fabric pieces in her new quilt. The images, the memories are depicted as almost dancing on the quilt, and Oma's, Emily's and the mother's smiles are like bright sunshine after a storm, signalling calmer skies and better weather ahead. Highly recommended.
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Emily and her mother help Oma move into a retirement community. Oma misses her house and her things from Maple street. Emily and her mother decide to make Oma a quilt of the old dresses and shirts from Oma's house. This helps Oma adjust to her new home.

Classroom connections: Many students experience moving to a new home and feeling upset about missing their old things. This book could be used to show them that everyone feels that way and that there are ways to deal with those feelings. Many children also deal with grandparents getting older and having to move. This book could help them understand how to help their grandparents deal with the move.