This year at the reunion, Lil Alan’s family is celebrating 75 years on the land that Granny and Pa, his great-grandparents, bought, and Lil Alan doesn’t know what gift to give Granny. Lil Alan pays attention, not just to what his siblings and cousins plan to do for Granny—sing a hymn, recite a Langston Hughes poem, make a scrapbook—but to conversations and stories about the land and their family history on it. “Think with your heart,” Daddy tells him. When the time comes for Lil Alan to give a gift to Granny, his presentation isn’t polished, but it’s heartfelt: a cloud of cotton from a plant, for all the quilts Granny’s made, a pecan for all the trees Pa planted and the kids still love to climb, and a pinch of dirt for the land that belongs to all of them. “'That’s alright,’ I hear Granny say.” Striking acrylic wash illustrations, with various patterns incorporated throughout, further ground this fictional African American family’s strong sense of identity and history. (Ages 5–8)

A 2020 CALDECOTT HONOR BOOK

Set at one young boy’s annual family reunion, this Caldecott Honor-winning picture book by Kelly Starling Lyons and Daniel Minter is a rich and moving celebration of Black history, culture, and the power of family traditions.

Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year
School Library Journal Best Books of the Year
Best Children’s Books of the Year ―Bank Street College of Education
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book ―Chicago Public Library

★“A warm, loving, necessary reminder of the power in families coming together.” —Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW

“On reunion morning, we rise before the sun. Daddy hums as he packs our car with suitcases and a cooler full of snacks. He says there’s nothing like going down home.”

Down home is Granny’s house. Down home is where Lil Alan and his parents and sister will gather with great-grandparents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Down home is where Lil Alan will hear stories of the ancestors and visit the land that has meant so much to all of them. And down home is where all of the children will find their special way to pay tribute to their family history. All the kids have to decide what they’ll share, but what will Lil Alan do?

Kelly Starling Lyons’ eloquent text explores the power of history and family traditions, and stunning illustrations by Coretta Scott King Honor- and Caldecott Honor-winner Daniel Minter reveal the motion and connections in a large, multi-generational family.

Discussion Guide and Teacher’s Guide available.