Review: Beep Beep Bubbie

Beep Beep Bubbie

by Bonnie Sherr Klein, illustrated by Élisabeth Eudes-Pascal

Tradewinds Books

Category: Picture Books

Reviewer: Sandy Wasserman

Buy at Bookshop.org

We meet brother and sister, Kate and Nate on Shabbat, headed for a visit to Bubbie's house for yet another adventure with their active grandmother. Their plan is to share a library book with her and then buy apples for Rosh Hashanah. Instead they meet their granny on a scooter, and they are hugely disappointed. They assume their active granny is no more! But granny shows them that her new electric scooter is an asset and not a liability; she is as active and fun as ever. Their day with her is filled with the adventures they had planned and even more, with granny leading the way. The colorful illustrations are so inviting and enticing; the young reader will feel they are on the bus with them, and at the market, and meeting new people, and flying a kite in the park. As a wonderful bonus, the scooter is named GLADYS. Why? Because of another bit of information: that book Kate wanted to share... it was about a woman, Frances Willard, who lived nearly 100 years ago. She learned to ride a bicycle at 53 and was so proud of her efforts, that she named her bike "Gladys" because it made her life "glad." So - for those reading this picture book, who have grandparents using any device for a mobility issue- it's not the end of their adventures with their busy and loving grandparents, and can still be quite upbeat.

 

Gentle, perfect picture book with Jewish themes. The children call their grandma "Bubbie," and they are planning an outing- buying apples for Rosh Hashanah. And the mitzvah of honoring grandparents, spending time with them, is clearly present.

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Reviewer Sandy Wasserman is a retired teacher of Gifted and Talented students, and taught for 35 years in both public schools and at a Solomon Schechter Day School. She's a wife, mother of two adult daughters, and grandmother to two fantastic 'first readers' of her manuscripts. Her published book, The Sun's Special Blessing [2009], was her first serendipitous and fun experience in the publishing world. She loves to read and swim, though not at the same time.