Children’s Book Council of Australia ‘Book of the Year Award 2014’

Symons (2010) states that the ‘Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Book of the Year Award’ is probably one of the most prestigious awards for children’s literature in Australia. I read six books from this year’s Early Childhood and Picture Book of the Year shortlist nominees but ‘Granny Grommet and Me’ stood out the most (The Children's Book Council of Australia, 2014). This book appealed to me because of its attractive, bright illustrations but also its relevance to children who may be scared of the sea and the “strange things under the waves” (Wolfer & Blair, 2013, p.8).

Written by Dianne Wolfer and illustrated by Karen Blair ‘Granny Grommet and Me’ is a touching tale of a boy out for the day with his grommet grandmother and her grommet friends. I found out that a grommet in surfing language is “an inexperienced but enthusiastic young surfer” (Negus, 2004, p.1). At first, the boy watches the Grommets boogie boarding and surfing but when he is invited in he confesses that he is too scared. The grandmother slowly tries to entice him in with a skim board and a paddle in knee deep water but when he gets scared by something strange brushing against his leg, the Grommets take him to their favourite rock pool to soak in the warm water. After his grandmother explains that the sea is like “a great big rock pool”, the boy has the courage to brave snorkelling (Wolfer & Blair, 2013, p. 15). The book finishes with a captivating illustration of the Grommets surrounding the boy in the water to make him feel safe and the boy’s realisation that there are wonderfully strange things under the sea.

Upon researching this book, I found that it is based on a group of elderly women aged between 52 and 73 who meet every Friday morning at Albany’s Middleton Beach in Western Australia (Negus, 2004). They call themselves the Granny Grommets and meet in all types of weather. The author was inspired by these women who have surfed together religiously for the past 15 years (Collins & Kennedy, 2012).

Part of the appeal of this book is the strong female characters and the unusual but warm relationship between the grandmother and her grandson. Water safety is an important part of the story with the Grommets being very safety conscious with their sun sense, their wearing of wetsuits to keep themselves warm, and the checking of rips in the tide. ‘Granny Grommet and Me’ would be a fantastic book for library staff to read at a Children’s Storytime, especially if the theme was the Beach. The pertinent ‘Granny Grommet Beach Tips’ at the end of the book would be a useful introduction to water safety. 

Image Attributions:
https://au.news.yahoo.com/a/16167850/granny-grommets-inspire-kids-book/


References

Negus. G. (2004). Granny Grommets: Episode 158. Retrieved from www.abc.net.au

Symons. (2010). Book of the Year 2014. Retrieved from http://symonsed.com.au/

The Children’s Book Council of Australia. (2014). Book of the Year Awards Short List 2014. Retrieved from http://cbca.org.au/ShortList-2014.htm.

Wolfer, D., & Blair, K. (2013). Granny Grommet and Me. Newtown: Walker Books.