Something About Grandma / Un Verano Especial con la Abuela by Tania de Regil

Hello, Tania de Regil! Welcome back to Watch. Connect. Read.! I love, love books about grandparents. I wanted to give Something About Grandma a big hug when I finished reading it. It is lovely!

Tania de Regil: Thank you so much Mr. Schu! And thank you for having me back, it’s always a treat being here.

What planted the seed for Something About Grandma / Un Verano Especial con la Abuela?

Tania de Regil: I think I’ve had this idea brewing in my head for a long time. Ever since I was a little girl, I was sure that my mother had some kind of special power. She had this ability to always know what I was up to, I could never keep a secret from her, and no matter what, she always knew how to make me feel better. It fascinated me and it still does. There’s a certain knowingness, a secret language, a deep understanding between a mother and her children that cannot be easily explained. But where do mothers get this magic power from? Well, from their own mother of course. It’s the ultimate kind of magic that is passed on from generation to generation – love.

This is why, for this book, I chose to focus on the relationship between a grandmother and her granddaughter. Grandmothers can be just as mysterious as mothers, or even more so. And though they are older, and sometimes might seem fragile, they are lively with wisdom and imagination. Through a summer without her mom and dad, Julia quickly discovers this and learns the true meaning of magic.

Please finish the following sentence starters:

Something About Grandma’s book trailer shows the process of creating this book. I’m so happy with how this book turned out and I can’t wait for everyone to the discover what’s so special about Grandma.

Grandma’s house is inspired by my childhood home. My parents still live there so I still consider it like my home. The house is not old, but in my opinion it’s quite fascinating. The floorboards creak, there’s always a cat wondering in and out, and a wonderful garden where we spend most of our time. This garden is filled with trees, lime and plum, that blossom in the spring and give us fruit during the summer. There’s an old patch of dirt where my mom has tried growing countless herbs but the only thing that has survived is the lavender and it’s where the cat likes to sleep now. But above all, it’s a house filled with love, just like Grandma’s house.

Picture books are for all ages! It doesn’t matter if you’re 1 or 100, everyone can enjoy picture books.

John Schu, you should have asked me…from your video, we learned that your initial intention was to create a story about a girl finding out that her grandmother is a fabulous witch, do you still believe that Julia’s Grandma could be a real witch?

I have my own answer, but I’ll let each reader decide this for themselves. I’ll end just by saying that I do believe all women are potentially witchy, especially grandmothers, and their love is absolutely magical. It’s like no other!

Thank you, Tania! 

Tania de Regil, the author-illustrator of A New Home and the illustrator of We Really Do Care by Tami Lewis Brown. She studied fashion design at Parsons School of Design in New York City before moving back to her native Mexico City, where she finished her degree. Something About Grandma is inspired by her own childhood memories of staying with her grandmother. Tania de Regil lives in Mexico City and travels to the United States frequently.