Just Like Grandpa Jazz

Grandpa Jazz tells his Grandson, Frank, stories all the time. Some of the stories are true, some are embellished a little with Grandpa's vivid imagination - just like a true grandpa!

Grandpa tells Frank all about how he came to live in Britain and the sorts of things he experienced as a young immigrant coming to England to work in the NHS. While packing to visit his tropical homeland island, the most poignant story about how grandpa got his name changed made my class gasp. We work hard to say names correctly in our room. A sad moment which could almost be missed if you've never thought about it; everyone deserves their name.

Having a mixed race family in the story was really great for our mixed race children to recognise themselves in the text. We also liked that there was a multi-generational family too; many of our families live with their grandparents. At the end of the story my class let out a cheer for the surprise. They didn't see the twist coming and they loved it!

A super book for PSHE and discussing different families. Our work on migration has really benefited from this book.

Picture book / Reviewed by Sharon, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 5+