When young Riley visits her grandmother, she finds her confused and forgetful. Mom steps in to explain that Grandma has something called dementia. That’s when Grandma comes to live with Riley and her family. This gives Riley an opportunity to help Grandma remember things. Since Grandma often wanders off by herself, Riley is cautioned not to leave Grandma alone. Grandma often mistakes Riley for her mother when she was Riley’s age and Riley has to remind her who she is. Sometimes Grandma remembers lots of things but mostly her short time memory fails her. When this happens Riley asks Grandma questions about the past and Grandma perks up and tells Riley stories about Grandpa. Grandma’s memory loss sometimes frightens Riley or frustrates her, making her want to hide so she doesn’t have to answer Grandma’s repetitive questions. One thing Grandma can remember is the words to her favorite songs. Riley gathers up some old CDs so Grandma can practice remembering song lyrics. A surprise birthday party thrills Grandma, who declares it to be the “best birthday ever.” Riley decides because Grandma can’t remember things, she would write down stories to tell Grandma instead.

Grandma, It’s Me! A Children's Book about Dementia written by Y.Y Chan and illustrated by Pearly L. is a marvelous story dealing with the horrible disease of dementia and how it affects loved ones. Author Y.Y. Chan approaches the subject with easy to read language and a caring attitude. The additional resources and reflection questions provide a helpful segue into a necessary conversation. Appropriately written for young readers, Grandma, It’s Me! is a valuable tool for a difficult discussion.

Riley loves her Grandma, but it’s hard to understand why sometimes Grandma doesn’t recognize her. You see, her Grandma has dementia. As Mommy explains, “Their brains sometimes don’t work as well as they used to. We need to be patient with Grandma.” Being patient is hard for Riley, especially when Grandma keeps asking her the same questions over and over again. Then Riley remembers all the silly questions she used to ask Grandma repeatedly and Grandma always answered with patience. When her grandparents move in with Riley’s family, Riley tries extra hard to help Grandma: reading stories she’s written in her journal to help jog her memory, singing songs Grandma loves, and taking her for walks in the park when she has the energy. Patience may not be easy at times, but love is always strong.

Y.Y. Chan’s picture book story, Grandma, It’s Me! A Children’s Book about Dementia, is a caring, compassionate way to teach young readers about memory loss and how they can help. The story unravels through daily journal entries; Riley is keeping a journal of all she does with Grandma and the stories they share, like the story of how Grandma and Grandpa first met. The font reflects the printing style of a young writer and the colorful illustrations help move the story along. Young readers will certainly connect with Riley’s feelings as she deals with a difficult and confusing situation affecting someone she loves. The power of love shines through this touching story. Beautifully told.

Amazing tool for families! We are a family who cares for an elderly person with dementia and this book was such a blessing! Highly recommend sharing this with your kids. It’s so important that we value and care for our elders and this book highlights that in such an understandable way! Very well done!

It’s such an inspiring story about a little girl trying to understand what is happening to her grandma. Why does she not remember her name? And sometimes she doesn’t even remember her! Through the story, we find ways we can help people with dementia remember. And even if they don’t, acceptance and love is the key. The illustrations are beautiful and bring the story to life. I wish this book was around when that happened to my grandma. Dementia was a frightful experience for some of her grandchildren.

But this book is not only about the story. It contains a lot of useful information on the back. The author also prepared activity sheets to go with the book which you can purchase on her website.

Y.Y.Chan has this amazing ability to write about difficult topics simply and in a way that touches your heart and brings tears to your eyes. She did the same in “Can you hear me, Daddy?”. She presented the subject of death and grief in a simple yet beautiful way. We need more books like that. I would highly recommend them!

This is a touching and heartfelt story about a young girl who struggles to understand and cope when her grandma has dementia. It's a tough topic for people of any age, which makes this book so relevant and relatable to all readers. On top of being so full of heart and emotion, it is also educational. The young girl, Riley, has to learn what it means to have dementia and how to properly care for and interact with someone who does. You can tell how much she loves her grandma and how it pains her to go through the experience with her, but the story is still full of so much hope and light.

Riley highlights her days with her grandma in journal entries, which are so fun to go through. I loved seeing her create new memories with her grandma and remind her of things they shared in the past. The illustrations are so bright, beautiful, and delightful. The fact that many of them were recreated from the author's own photos is so so special. This book was made from the heart and it shows. It is also full of lots of information regarding dementia, as well as resources, at the end of the book.

Everyone can benefit from reading this touching and educational story. I love how such a difficult and emotional topic is highlighted in such a beautiful book. I recommend this to people of all ages and am sure everyone will find it as special as I do.