Okay, I love everything about this book. Will it exactly suit every child's situation? No. As a child, I wouldn't have related to the story; I wasn't named after anyone, and my grandparents lived too far away for frequent visits. I would have enjoyed the story, though, because it's sweet, and while I might not have been able to put my finger on it, there's a lot of mutual respect between Maud and Grand-Maud- there's nothing better than an adult who takes you seriously and doesn't talk down to you when you're a kid. Any children's story with family involved won't perfectly suit every child's situation, and that's okay. This is a lovely story where a child gets to feel special and spends time with someone who loves them. It's about the little rituals that make special times special. It's about listening to each other's stories. That's beautiful.
Also beautiful are the illustrations, filled with warm, cozy color, sweet details, and a mixed-race family (Maud presents Asian, Grand-Maud presents white, Maud's imagined future children are a mix of the these). I especially loved the wordless spread featuring a possible future story about a cat (Maud wants to be an author when she grows up). This book gave me the warm happy feels, that makes it a winner in my opinion!

#MaudandGrandMaud #NetGalley

This is a book that reinforces gender and family norms, and won't be suitable for kids whose grandparents aren't really in the picture.

Maud loves to spend the weekends at Grand-Maud's house. They watch black-and-white movies, eat breakfast for supper, and wear matching nightgowns. Grand-Maud lets Maud think that everything was black-and-white in the olden days, and encourages her to have a whole herd of children while living on an author's salary. (Okay, so maybe I'm being a little snarky here, but if Maud thinks she's going to be able to support seven children by writing, she might be in for a bit of a surprise.)

While the premise is sort of cute, I can see it being problematic for some kids. I lived on the opposite side of the country from my grandparents, and I think a book like this would've made me ache with longing... and also be jealous of my cousins who lived closer. Also, Maud seems to be an only grandchild; if she were one of seven (like the family she wants to have), she probably wouldn't get the undivided attention (and showering of gifts) from her grandmother.

I guess there's nothing objectively wrong with this. But it's going to appeal most to a very specific audience.

Maud and Grand-Maud is a lovely book about a relationship between a Grandmother and Granddaughter.

This book is just so sweet. It's familial ties and bonding in it makes my heart sing. It's honestly one of the greatest little picture books I've picked up lately. It's so sweet and wholesome! I highly recommend it if you want a sweet, little read to sink into with your little ones. It also has beautiful yet soft illustrations that really tie the story together.

Four out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tundra Books for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

Absolutely adorable with gorgeous illustrations. I love the touching story of a quiet sleepover with Maud and her Grand-Maud. This reminds me of times with my own grandmother (especially tv trays and a late show) and how my children have also had special sleepovers with their grandmothers. A truly timeless story that I'm sure will be enjoyed for generations to come.

I requested and received an e-ARC of this book from Sara O’Leary and Penguin Random House Canada through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a sweet story about the special bond between a grandmother and her granddaughter and how small things become special memories. This would make a great gift for a grandmother to give to her new granddaughter.

I could not love this book more. One of my favourite picture authors, Sara O"Leary has done it again. A sweet lyrical story of the love between a grandmother and granddaughter. The lovely details took me back to special times I had with my own grandmother.

This is a delightful story about a granddaughter visiting her grandmother. She talks about the special rituals they have during their visit and how she learns about her grandmother and vice versa. The illustrations are gentle and add to the comforting ambiance of the story. A joy to read!

This book was really adorable and did an amazing job at showing just how important Maud's relationship is with Grand-Maud. She cherishes sentimental gifts more than materialistic ones and dreams about one day being Grand-Maud herself. I think the story was a bit short and didn't have much of a plot other than showing their relationship. It was very endearing, but I do think it needed something extra to make it more interesting.

The bond between grandparent and grandchild is an incredibly powerful one. There is a trust and a safety with one’s grandparents and the bond is such, if nurtured by grandparents and parents, that grandchildren can view their grandparent as the person they turn to when things get difficult.

In Maud and Grand-Maud Sara O’Leary explores the relationship between a little girl named Maud and her namesake. On “special Saturdays” Maud gets to spend time with Grand-Maud. There are special PJs, movies and lots of stories. There is a special suitcase with a surprise in it for Maud every time she comes.

Author Sara O’Leary perfectly captures all the magic of this inter generational relationship in her simply beautiful words.

Kenard Pak’s illustrations with muted colours compliment this story to a tee and have somewhat of a Madeline quality to them. The illustrations are not too busy with large two page spreads to fully capture Maud and Grand-Maud’s time together

Absolutely perfect! I can’t wait to buy a copy for my grandma and my mom. Makes me think back to weekends spent with my grandparents, away from my younger sister, and all the special memories that we created. Beautifully soft illustrations, with the perfect little details to make the story come alive.

This was a great story about the relationship a child has with their grandparent. I especially liked that while there was always a present for Maud in the special trunk, that the story explained that Maud's favourite gifts were not from the store, but the handmade or hand me down ones.

It was warm both in illustrations and prose as the bond between grand-kid and grand parent is highlight...warm monotone (just the way like it) awash with light and the simple yet enjoyable activities they both do paints the feelings.