He Says...She Says

By Author / Illustrator

Anne Fine, illus Gareth Conway

Genre

Family & Home

Age range(s)

Publisher

Barrington Stoke

ISBN

9780008695637

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

01-08-2024

Synopsis

Skye and Harry discover Gran isn't quite as strict as Dad makes out in this funny family story from multi-award-winning author Anne Fine.

Skye and Harry are dreading going to visit their gran, as Dad says she was so strict when he was young. He had to do lots of chores, wasn't allowed much screen time and only had sweet treats on a Sunday! But when they arrive, Gran is much more chilled out than they were expecting. She lets them relax in the garden and play on their games consoles. On their way home, Harry wants to confront his dad, but Skye sees an opportunity.

Particularly suitable for readers aged 7+ with a reading age of 7.

Download Extract

Reviews

What grandparent does not wan to spoil their grandchildren, just a little bit? This beautiful story accurately details the complicated relationship between children and their grandparents, compared to the relationship that their parents had with them when they were growing up. Children and adults will be able to identify with the characters and the text will allow for many family discussions about similarities and differences.

In He Says...She Says, Gran's opinion of what happened when dad was growing up ( She says...) is very different from Dad's memories of the same events ( He says...). In school, I would use this story to discuss different people's points of view and recollection of the same events; you could easily use this to begin discussions of when is it ok not to tell the whole truth and as a family, it would lead to lots of discussions and hours with photo albums!

A wonderfully pitched story with dyslexia friendly print and buff paper. Perfect for an early chapter book readers to read by themselves; event better to share.

64 pages / Reviewed by Amanda Shipton, teacher