“The scratchboard and watercolor artwork enhances the beauty of this heartwarming story about the love this little girl has for nature and her grandmother. The scenes are cozy because of how the starry skies, the wildlife, and the abundance of trees surround the main characters on every page. This is a powerful intergenerational story about how a grandmother came to be a role model for her granddaughter.” (School Library Journal, starred review)

“[T]he narrator’s heartfelt observations of the seasons and admiration of her grandma ring with authenticity. McGehee’s scratchboard, watercolor, and dye illustrations are executed with just the right primitive note and add significant appeal to the overall story with their excellent design and expert color sense. A celebration of both family and nature with exemplary illustrations.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“A girl sings the praises of her grandmother in Bissonette’s children’s book debut, illustrated by McGehee (My Wilderness: An Alaskan Adventure) in sturdy scratchboard images that underscore the ruggedness of both Grandma and the landscape she loves. Throughout the seasons, the girl and her grandmother, who describes herself as “not a good-looking woman” and wears her late husband’s flannel shirts, enjoy what the woods have to offer. In the spring, that means studying migrating birds (a circular close-up of ducks in a pond lets readers feel like they are peering through binoculars alongside these two “north woods girls”). And in winter, the season they like “best of all,” they take a midnight stroll across a snow-covered field. Tinted with dyes and watercolors, McGehee’s illustrations have the static grace of stained glass, and girl and grandmother take on an almost saintly appearance as they gaze up at a winter moon. It’s a book that celebrates life’s simple, quiet pleasures—from canning summer vegetables to savoring the smell of pine—as well as the importance of sharing them with like-minded souls of any age.” (Publishers Weekly)

“Over the course of this lovely book, a young girl pays seasonal visits to her grandma, a feisty, sweet and unconventional North Woods dweller. Thanks to Aimée Bissonette’s engaging narrative and Claudia McGehee’s dense, gorgeous scratchboard renderings of the natural world, we’re immersed in their wanderings and explorations in a way completely captivating. Another fine effort from the Minnesota Historical Society Press, where they’ve mastered the art of putting authors and illustrators together with great success.” (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

“One of the prettiest and well-written books of the season is narrated by a girl who admires her grandmother for not looking like other grandmas: “She’s bony. And she dresses in Grandpa’s old flannel shirts.” But Grandma knows the woods behind her house and where to observe animals and ducks. In winter, the girl and Grandma walk the nighttime snowy woods. In summer, they plant a big garden. … This charming story of intergenerational love and appreciation of our natural surroundings is brought to life by McGehee’s richly colored scratchboard drawings.” (Mary Ann Grossmann, Pioneer Press)