Mina Javaherbin describes her close relationship with her grandma growing up in Iran in this autobiographical story imbued with vivid details. Her grandma’s daily bread delivery came via basket on a rope to their third floor apartment. When her grandma did her morning prayers, Mina liked to lay across her back. When her grandma sewed her chadors, Mina “helped” by draping them over the table to make a rocket ship, or wearing one like a cape to pretend she could fly. Mina’s best friend and neighbor, Annette, often came over to play accompanied by her grandmother—Mina’s grandma’s best friend. While the two women practice different religions—one Muslim, one Christian—they have much in common, including love for each other and their granddaughters, and compassion for others. A story celebrating Mina’s bond with her grandma and friendship between and across generations is set against light-infused illustrations that add to the sense of warmth. (Ages 4–7)

In a true tale of a young girl in Iran and her grandmother, this beautiful ode to family celebrates small moments of love that become lifelong memories.

In this big universe full of many moons, I have traveled and seen many wonders, but I have never loved anything or anyone the way I love my grandma.

While Mina is growing up in Iran, the center of her world is her grandmother. Whether visiting friends next door, going to the mosque for midnight prayers during Ramadan, or taking an imaginary trip around the planets, Mina and her grandma are never far apart. At once deeply personal and utterly universal, Mina Javaherbin’s words make up a love letter of the rarest sort: the kind that shares a bit of its warmth with every reader. Soft, colorful, and full of intricate patterns, Lindsey Yankey’s illustrations feel like a personal invitation into the coziest home, and the adoration between Mina and her grandma is evident on every page.