The Greatest - by Veera Hiranandani (Hardcover)

About the Book

A grandfather reflects on his loving relationship with his three grandchildren.

Book Synopsis

In this poignant tribute to grandparents everywhere, a grandfather reflects on his loving relationship with his three grandchildren. This story beautifully captures how love can make anyone "the greatest" in someone's eyes.

A NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

From Newbery Honor author Veera Hiranandani and National Book Award finalist Vesper Stamper comes a poignant story about the love between grandparents and grandchildren.

Grandpa loves Sundays-- that's when his three grandchildren come to visit. They act out plays, catch fireflies in the yard, and celebrate Jewish holidays together. His grandchildren bestow affection and admiration on him. Sometimes, though, he wonders why they think he's so great? Should he tell them that he's just an average, ordinary man?

Here is a book that wonderfully captures how simple, everyday moments can turn into treasured memories, and how the power of love makes us all the "greatest" to somebody.

Review Quotes

★ "A moving ode to family connection [and a] demonstrative work about the expansive strength of ordinary love." --Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A joyous, sweet, and tender tale of intergenerational love." --Kirkus Reviews

"An homage to the joyous bond between grandparents and grandchildren, this works as a read-aloud or for one-on-one sharing." --Booklist

About the Author

Veera Hiranandani, author of the Newbery Honor-winning The Night Diary, earned her MFA in creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College. She is the author of The Whole Story of Half a Girl, a Sydney Taylor Notable Book and a South Asia Book Award finalist, and How to Find What You're Not Looking For, winner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award and the New York Historical Society Children's History Book Prize. A former editor at Simon & Schuster, she now teaches in the Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA Program at The Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Vesper Stamper writes and illustrates novels which tell, through both words and pictures, stories of history's rhymes. Her debut illustrated YA novel, What the Night Sings, about the aftermath of the Holocaust through the eyes of a young musician, was a National Book Award Nominee, a National Jewish Book Award Finalist, a Morris Award Finalist, Golden Kite Honor Book and Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner, and was named one of the Best YA Books of 2018/9 by YALSA, the Wall Street Journal and Kirkus. Vesper has a BFA in Illustration from Parsons and an MFA in Illustration as Visual Essay from School of Visual Arts. She teaches illustration at School of Visual Art.