Little Granny Quarterback

by Bill Martin Jr., Michael Chesworth, Michael Sampson

Granny Whiteoak's football career won her trophies and plaques in her day, but years later she still remembers how she fumbled the ball and lost the big game. Can Granny make a comeback?

Genres: Picture Books, Sports, Storytime, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2001

About the author

Bill Martin, Jr. (1916-2004) was an elementary-school principal, teacher, writer, and poet. His more than 300 books, among them the bestselling classics Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See ; Polar Bear Polar Bear What Do You Hear ; Panda Bear Panda Bear What Do You See ; and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom , are a testament to his ability to speak directly to children. Martin held a doctoral degree in early childhood education. Born in Kansas, he worked as an elementary-school principal in Chicago before moving to New York City, where he worked in publishing, developing innovative reading programs for schools. After several years, he devoted himself full-time to writing his children's books. He lived in New York until 1993, when he moved to Texas. He lived in the east Texas woods, near the town of Commerce, until he passed away in 2004.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/billma...

Reviews

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis: "Despite her aches and pains, an elderly woman who was once a star quarterback dreams of being able to atone for the one big game that she lost."

My Review: Both Munchkin and I really enjoyed this book. Being a football family, as soon as I discovered this book I had to have it. I am definitely not disappointed. Munchkin was thoroughly engrossed in the story throughout the whole thing. It had great messages about keeping your dreams alive and that sports aren't just for boys. The only downfall for me is that it ended way to quickly, I would have loved more!

[Michelle Gallegos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is story of a Little Granny who remembers her days as a quarterback on a football team. After watching a game in her retirement, she is reminded of her glory days on the field. She sees herself playing in the field, running, jumping, and getting to the end zone scoring a touchdown. This book uses a lot of rhyme to tell the story with illustrations that accompany the text. Children will have fun reading the text and seeing the illustrations that show a lot of motion (the little granny running down the field). This book could help children find rhyming words and the listen to them as they read the story.

[Andrea Hallahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is silly and empowering for young children. Most people think of football players as men, so it is relieving to break stereotypes in a funny way such as a grandmother who misses her football days. I love that the grandmother was an absolute star with trophies and awards, and can show children that you don’t need to be a certain gender for a predominately gender specific activity.

[Sean Harding · Rating 2 out of 5]

Martin Quest #34
Great title in search of a better story, lots of rhyming but really a pretty dull predictable story.
The short amount of pages and words limit the ability to flesh out a story, perhaps this would have been better as a chapter book and coming up with a bigger more interesting tale.

[Caitlyn Santi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun, sweet, humorous read that I think both children and adults will enjoy!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a silly story about a granny who is a quarterback.

[Amber Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story Little Granny Quarterback is a fiction book. It is about a grandmother who reminisces when she was younger and was the quarterback on a football team. The grandmother then imagines herself playing one last football game, and how exciting it is. She imagines herself leaping, jumping, twisting, and running with the ball, eventually scoring the game winning touchdown.
As a literacy teacher I would use this text to show students how some authors use rhyme to help tell a story. The line “Helmet hits helmet. What a blow! Granny sees stars. Can she still go?” is one that vividly illustrates Granny colliding with a football player, but is told using rhyme. Younger students could interact with the story by identifying the rhyming words, while older students could add to the story, and do so by writing their part in a rhyming format.
Bill Martin Jr. has written several children’s books along with Michael Sampson. Although I couldn't find much information on Bill Martin Jr.’s background, Michael Sampson played, and was passionate about both football and books from 6th-12th grades. It was unclear whether the illustrator, Michael Chesworth, has a background that may relate to his artwork in this book, however, he has illustrated and authored several children’s books over his career. This text could help convey to children that no matter the age or gender, boys and girls can play football. I would recommend this book to teachers because it shows children people are not locked into a certain role in life due to race or gender, and to also be accepting of others around us.

[Davonni · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Little Granny Quarterback is about a grandmother who reminisces about the days she use to play football. She relives her time playing football by talking about all the joys she had while playing. She imagines herself jumping and twisting with the ball and even scoring the game winning touchdown! This book uses lots of rhymes in telling the story of Little Granny Quarterback. As a literacy teacher I would use this book not only to talk about stereotypes but to also have the children try to come up with their own short stories by using rhymes. Bill Martin Jr the author of this book also played football as a child. It is not clear if his grandmother played football too. The author and the illustrator both do a good job in telling this story where a child could relate to it. I love all the rhyming words they use throughout the story. The fact that this grandmother use to play football, related to my topic in the fact that some people feel as though football is a male sport. Little granny Quarterback is showing that stereotypes are not something that need to define who you are. I would recommend this book to other teachers because i believe this is something the students would enjoy talking about. They can lean lessons about stereotypes and while having fun.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this one up because my mom is often the quarterback (or pitcher, or goalie, whatever) for my son's play gaming, and I took it home for a laugh. I was told in no uncertain terms that she looks nothing like the granny on the cover!

[Bvlmc Buchanan Verplanck Elementary School · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever wonder what it would be like to miss out on a dream and then have a chance to make it come true in old age? Kids will enjoy this rhythmic story about a granny playing football and it's humorous ending.

[Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny for my three-year-old lover of football. He laughed so hard! I like the rhyming and the rhythm of it.

[LoriAnn Kocialski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute Story!

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

No matter how old, what color, male or female anyone is, everyone should have the right to achieve their dreams. Should stereotypes prevent us from achieving our dreams?

[Kendra · Rating 2 out of 5]

My oldest is obsessed with football so we tried this one - not my favorite. We didn't really care for it.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was hilarious! Being able to fight for redemption is a great asset to hold onto. It really shows children to keep fighting even if they fall once.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just another favorite Story Time selection. I have read this two years in a row for our "sports" theme. It just cracks me up!

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tell her she's too old to play and she'll beat you with her cane!