Great-Grandmother Nell is “prickly” and “stern.” At 96, she is also full of memories: the time her sour cherry prize won first prize, the days a Hershey bar cost a nickel, the childhood moment “her best friend said they couldn’t be friends anymore because of her brown skin.” A picture book that moves between moments in the present and memories of the past gains a sense of immediacy and engagement from the young narrator’s present-tense, first-person voice, in which love and compassion hum beneath the surface, even as she sometimes finds it a challenge to connect with her older relative. Illustrations in two styles delineate between present and past and include a double-page collage suggesting a scrapbook, showing Great-Grandmother Nell’s intersection with African American history and culture in the mid-20th century. (Ages 5–9)

Great-grandmother Nell eats fish for breakfast, she doesn't hug or kiss, and she does NOT want to be called grandma. Her great-granddaughter isn't sure what to think about her. As she slowly learns more about Nell's life and experiences, the girl finds ways to connect with her prickly great-grandmother.