Product Description

Emily loves to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Like most grandchildren, she gets lots of affection and the freedom to do what she wants. But sadly, every visit comes to an end, leaving Emily longing for a way to feel close to her grandparents ... until she can see them again.

A 2009 Independent Publisher s award winner, this gracefully illustrated story begins with Emily's sorrowful wishes: ''I wish you didn t live so far away. I wish I could sleep over any time I want.'' It continues with a special gift from Grandma and Grandpa that teaches Emily to use her imagination, memory, and natural surroundings to feel connected to her grandparents. In the end, Emily surprises her grandparents with a gift of her own, showing them that children are not the only ones who can use memories and imagination as comfort when they are missing those they hold dear.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #86688 in Books
• Published on: 2008-11-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

Review
.... a wonderful book addressing the emotions that almost every child experiences when it is time to leave their grandparents' house. --Reader Views

Children ages 3 to 8, especially those who have grandparents or other relatives living some distance away, will appreciate this book. The book would likely be helpful for a child in a broken home where one parent lives a distance away or only has limited visitation rights. --BookIdeas.com

Illustrator Joni Stringfield's bright and cheery illustrations capture the mood of the story. Christian expresses her wish for the book in her From the Author: ''It is my sincere hope that the gift of this book strengthens the bond between you, your children, and their grandparents and that it may grow to be a cherished keepsake for generations to come.'' The book should fulfill her hope. --MyShelf.com

About the Author
Alayne Kay Christian is a writer, certified life coach, and proud grandmother to three-year-old Elle. Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa was born out of the struggle and longing she experienced as a ''remote'' grandparent and her dedication to ensuring that Elle felt the love of her grandparents when they could not be together. Born in the Rockies, raised in Chicago, and now residing in Raleigh, North Carolina, Alayne's writing shares the creative spirit and kinship with nature that organically resides in her heart.

About the Illustrator
Joni Stringfield is a lifelong artist and freelance illustrator specializing in children's creations. Having recently completed illustrations on the picture book Circle of Three, Joni makes her second foray into this genre with Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa. As has been the case since childhood, she spends her time drawing, painting, and reading. Currently living and working in San Francisco, California, Joni feels fortunate to be able to employ the artistic passions of her youth in her professional (and somewhat grown-up) career.

Customer Reviews

This is a very sweet book
This book is about a little girl with grandparents that live far away. The little girl's grandmother makes her a book that shows her how she can use her imagination and memories to be close to her grandma and grandpa even when she can't be with them. My daughter's grandparents also live far away so she is very interested in the book. The book has been a way to comfort my daughter and has given her something to relate to. It has a neat concept in that, you get to read the book that the grandma in the story writes as well, so it's a book within a book. My daughter loves the illustrations and we have great fun giving each other our own butterfly kisses while we're reading it. I think the book engages my daughter's imagination and emotions and gives us a chance to explore a little bit of nature too. I have purchased the book as a gift for her grandparents because they liked it so much when they read it as well. I think it brought a tear to my mother's eye. I would definitely suggest this book for anyone, but especially for people that are challenged by distance.

I Wanna Stay At Grandpa's House!
Yes, all little ones go through this at one time or another - or even multiple times! Our 3 year old grandson typically laments at the end of our telephone conversations - "I wanna go to papa's house!" This story is a nice warm one that discusses the impacts and warm fuzzies for the feelings Emily and lots of other kids have as they pack up to go home from grandma and prandpa's house. It is a great story to share grandparent to grandchild!

Very sweet and engaging!
Reviewed by Cayden (age 4) and Max (age 2) Aures and Mom for Reader Views (10/08)

"Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa" is about a girl named Emily who loves to stay at her grandparents' house. While she is there she gets to do so many fun things! However, the time always comes when she must go home and this makes her very sad. To ease her sadness, her grandparents wrote a book for her that she is to read whenever she misses them.

Cayden: "We like going to grandma and papa's house too! They always let us do fun things like take us to the beach, and the park, and fishing! I get sad when I have to leave like the girl in the book is."
Max: "Me sad too! Cry!"

Cayden: "Look, their garden looks kind of like a park!"
Max: "Bench, flowers!"

Cayden: "I liked the book that the grandma and grandpa made for the girl. My favorite part was the part about the moon and stars being the same moon and stars that grandma and grandpa see when they look out their window. It was really nice of them to make the book for the girl."

Cayden: "When are we going to grandma and papa's house again?"
Max: "Go there?"

Parent's comments:

"Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa" by Alayne Kay Christian is a wonderful book addressing the emotions that almost every child experiences when it is time to leave their grandparents' house. Both the story and the illustrations were very sweet and engaging. My children could completely relate to the situation. I think this book would be the perfect gift for any grandparent to give to their grandchildren!