Bigmama's

by Donald Crews

1991 Bigmama's (Paperback/Staples-Saddle Stitch Binding)(8"x9.8") by Donald Crews *** 9780590221214 *** 32

Genres: Picture Books, Family, Childrens, African American, Memoir, Cultural, Biography

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Donald Crews (born August 30, 1938) is an American illustrator and writer of children's picture books. In 2015, the American Library Association (ALA) honored him with the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal, recognizing his lasting contribution to children's literature. Common subjects of his include modern technology (especially travel vehicles), and childhood memories. His stories often include few humans.

Two of his works were runners-up, or Caldecott Honor Books, for the ALA's annual award for picture book illustration, the Caldecott Medal.

Donald Crews was born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1938. He had an older brother, Asa who became Beth Israel Hospital's first African-American intern, and two sisters. His mother worked as a seamstress, and his father worked at the railroad, and several other odd jobs. For the summers he would travel down to rural Florida to stay with his grandmother, who he called "Bigmama". The difference between the big city and the farm caused him to create two, massively different types of art later on in his life.

From a young age, his talent for drawing was encouraged by his family and his teachers. When he got into high school, one of his teachers became a mentor to him, and personally made sure that he got into art school.

He graduated from Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City, and married another graduate, graphic artist Ann Jonas.

Crews was drafted into the army in 1963, and sent to Frankfurt, Germany. Their first daughter, Nina was born in Germany, and their second was born a year later in New York. Nina is also an award-winning children's book author.

While in Germany, he worked on several pieces for his portfolio, including the book We Read: A to Z (1967). After several suggestions from friends, he submitted it, and it was published by Harper & Row (now HarperCollins). The book relied on abstract ideas, rather than the clichés that were usually associated with ABC books. One classic example is the entry for the letter C: "Cc, corner: where the yellow is" is illustrated with a yellow square in the far corner of a red page in the book.

He created several other books over the next few years, but it was 1978's Freight Train that won him a Caldecott Honor and the respect of other artists in the field. He won another Caldecott Honor the next year for Truck. Several other transportation themed books followed, such as School Bus (1984), Flying (1986), and Sail Away (1995). His memories from his summers in Florida first appeared in Bigmama's and later in Shortcut. These stories are vastly different from his previous works, in that they focus on humans, and tell a more linear story.

Crews and his wife currently live in the state of New York in an old, restored farmhouse overlooking the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adults will probably enjoy this one more than children as Crews remembers his wonderful summer days spent at his grandmother's house. You can almost hear the cicadas buzz as he and his siblings explore, go fishing, and stargazing.

This brought back magical memories of my own youth when my mantra was eat and play, do it again the next day.

[Almira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recently our library system had a tremendous training on diversity in our children's programming - living in a part of the country that is pretty much "white", I admit that I tend to stick to that which our community is familiar with, although more often than not, I do use story time books whose characters are animals, that being said, I am going to make a much more concentrated effort to include more diverse books at story times...

This one just popped off the shelf at me yesterday. It now sits on my shelf to read at story time next week.

"We" are going to visit Bigmama for the summer - she's not "big" she's the mama of their mama.
They take the train to Cottondale, where they are met by Uncle Slank, they hope he will bring the horse and wagon, but he brings the car instead. And their summer is off and running.
Children will identify with the various differences of living in their own homes, and those of relatives.

I enjoyed the love shown in this story.

[Teonna Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story line of an older male reminiscing on the summer he and his family would have while visiting his big mama. It made me think of the joy and wonder I had as a child when we visited our family in Texas and the stories my mom would tell of her childhood with Big Mama.
Illustrations did not do well in bringing life to this story.

[Peyton Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Donald Crews did a good job on setting the tone and time period that this book took place in. The imagery went perfectly with every detail that was being described on the page. The wording also gave me a look into how they spoke overall as a family. The ending was a huge turn with it ending up being one of the children reminiscing on his childhood summers at his “big mamas”.

[V]

I first came across this on a Facebook post about Black History Month. T has two of the author's other books, Truck and School Bus, and he liked this one too!

V's Review

Young Donald Crews visits his grandparents and takes comfort in the constancy of family.

Readers who live far from grandparents and extended family may identify with the author as he describes his trip to visit his grandmother. Crews emphasizes how happy he and his siblings are to visit and see that everything stays the same from year to year. The extended family comes together for a meal at the end of the book, but everyone is so excited to see one another that they barely eat. Reading this book to T called to mind childhood visits to my grandparents who lived half a country away, and it left me feeling happy.

T's Review
(age 3 years)

After reading:

V: Where does he [the narrator, Donald] go?

T: He goes to his grandma's.

V: Are you kind of like the boy in here? Why?

T: Yeah. Cuz I go to my grandma's.

V: His cousin comes from down the road. Do you have a cousin who comes? What do you do when you are at your grandma's?

T: G. Play with him.

V: How did this book make you feel?

T: Happy.

V: Will you show me your favorite pages?

T: This is my favorite page...cuz of all the colors...This is my favorite...I just like it.
(First T showed the colorful endpaper and then he showed the page where Donald's family rides the train.)

V: Who would this be a good book for? Why?

T: G. Because he is a happy little boy.

[Courtney Dyer · Rating 2 out of 5]

A departure from Crews’ typical writing style comes a nostalgic, evocative story about another summer’s visit to bigmama’s house told from the perspective of a child. Trading in his vibrant illustrations for a more realistic style, Crews uses watercolor and gouache paints in rich earth tones paired with soft lines to bring this memorable childhood experience to life.

“Every summer we went to see her- Mama, my sisters, my brother, and me.” They rode the train for 3 days to Cottondale, Florida to visit Bigmama. Nothing ever changed- the wind-up record player, the kerosene lamps, the backyard chicken coop- everything was just the same.



Bigmama’s is a sweet recollection of author Donald Crews’ childhood summers spent at his grandma’s house. I couldn’t help but make the connection with my own childhood summers spent visiting my grandparents in Cocoa Beach. To this day my grandparents still live in the same house along the river and not much has changed as far back as I can remember. As a teacher, this story is a great addition to any author study on Donald Crews. It also makes for a great mentor text when teaching young writers how to add details to paint a better picture in their reader’s mind. This book is perfect for children ages 4-8.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I totally disagree with the rating I just gave Bigmama's. Before people start to think that I have some sort of personality disorder, let me explain. I thought Bigmama's was a great book. It was about the times that Donald Crews spent on his grandparents Florida farm when he and his siblings were kids. The story was told in spare, uncomplicated language, but it was clear that Crews holds these memories close to his heart.

My niece, however, wasn't overly impressed with this book, and my six year old nephew proclaimed it, "Boringest. Book. Ever." This is probably an exaggeration, because I'm pretty sure that I've read "the boringest book ever," and this wasn't it. That said, even my sister didn't care for the story, or even for the illustrations of the people in the book.

So, it seems that my family and I don't see eye to eye here. Maybe I'm just more sentimental than the other people in my family. Or maybe they are the crazy ones.

[Rachael LaRochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed Big Mama's. It is about a family who takes a trip to their grandparent’s house every summer. They take a three day train ride to Cottondale, where their grandparents live. They are picked up by their Uncle Slank, who takes them out to Big Mama’s farm. Big Mama’s farm never changes. They spend the summer playing with their cousins and friend the farm. At night, all the relatives have dinner together and enjoy gazing up at the million stars in the sky.
It reminded me of going to my Grandparents house every Sunday for Sunday dinner. Except they did not live on a farm, they lived off the 405 in West. L.A. Just like in the story, nothing ever changed at my Grandparents and my whole family was always there every Sunday. It was an unspoken rule that unless your foot fell off, you were not to miss Sunday dinners at Grandma's house. To this day those Sunday dinners are some my fondest memories.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bigmama's is a story about the memories of Donald Crews going with his family to visit his grandparents in Florida. The children call the Grandparents Bigmama and Bigpapa and they lived on a rural farm with a pond. It is easy to relate to the story for most children because they visit grandparents and although the visits may differ the relationships within the family are similar and give the children a feeling of belonging to the family. The children in my preschool room love Bigmama's and love to share when they visit grandparents.

[SaraLaLa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book would be good for teaching about setting. In fact, that's pretty much all that the book is about. It talks about Bigmama's house and describes it inside and out. Nothing really happens other than they travel to her house, walk around it and have dinner. I found it boring since there's no problem (and thus no climax or solution), but my mother found it fun because you can see that the children are enjoying the country life style.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about a trip to grandma's house. The illustrations were wonderful. The story could have been a little better. It goes into too much about the various rooms of the house. It would have been better if it had talked about the characters themselves more. The last page, though, was brilliant.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bigmama's is a book written by Donald Crew. As the children take a three day train trip to the country to visit their grandparents for the summer, they are united with their families and cousins and are are reminded of how things at grandma's house never change. The is a great book for preschoolers up through age 8. A great book for any young children to reflect upon their summer days.

[Goshen PL Childrens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Donald Crews recalls visiting his grandmother (Bibmama) and grandfather (Bigpapa) as a child. After a three day train trip, his family arrives. The kids take off their shoes and socks; they won't need them much in the next few weeks. He describes all the wonderful, unchanging, old fashioned things at Bigmama's - kerosene lamps, a treadle sewing machine, the well, water pump, and chicken house. And the outhouse - okay now, but scary in the dark. The house, the porches, and the stability of knowing that it will always be the same brought back fond memories of summer visits to my own grandmother' house. I especially love the book's last page - the author as an adult looking out a city window: "Some nights even now, I think that I might wake up in the morning and be at Bigmama's with the whole summer ahead of me."

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four African American children travel with their mother, and when the train arrives in Cottondale, Florida, the summer at Bigmama's house begins! Donald Crews brilliantly evokes the sights, sounds, and emotions of a memorable childhood experience. Beautifully and richly illustrated, this is a wonderful choice for family reading and classroom sharing.

Donald Crews, the Caldecott Honor artist and award-winning creator of many classic picture books for young children, writes of his own childhood experiences visiting his grandparents in Florida.

This is what I see in my grandchildren when they come to visit and they tear through the house "checking it all out" and loving the memories of the visits. But the adventures these children have are what I want share with my grandkids in my next home. Delightfully Homey!

[Shaunterria · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tribute to the trips "back home" many black families took, and still take, every summer, Bigmama's by Donald Crews had me knee-deep in nostalgia for days spent running after my cousins and nights sleeping on a pallet on the floor in my Granna's living room, surrounded by the same. The artwork is dated (kerosene lamps, a wind-up record player), but the feeling evoked by the storytelling is not - I still fondly remember heading to my grandparents' to play outside until it was time to come inside and eat and laugh and share with the people I love, just like in the story. Recommended for readalouds about families and for collections in need of diverse faces and voices (which is all of them, tbh).

[K.C. Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fun story is about Donald Crews and his family visiting his grandparents in the summer when he was a child. The setting is very rural. Crews narrates the story in the style of a child, talking about how everything in his grandparent’s house stayed the same year after year. This story has appeal for both children and adults. The text tells the story but the pictures add to the feel of staying in the summer on an old farm. The watercolor and gouache paintings show a family sharing all things. Everything in the book is warm and welcoming. This is a great book to begin storytelling with students, since they probably have someone they visit and some things to share about the visit. It may be well used after a trip to a farm or rural area.

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Fiction
Grade Level: Lower or Upper Elementary (K-3)

I thought this was a sweet book about a boy reminiscing on a summer when he went to visit his grandmother. I could not relate to most of the boy's experiences in this book, however I really enjoyed reading about them. While I could not relate to them, it is possible that some of my students could. I think it is important to learn about cultures and traditions different to our own. I also really enjoyed how colorful and detailed the illustrations were. I think they complimented the text very well. Overall, I would give this book 4 stars.

[Roben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Going to Bigmama's is the highlight of the summer! The whole family gathers for fishing and fun.

I enjoyed reading this story of Donald Crews' memories of summers with his grandparents. I have always loved Freight Train and Ten Black Dots - but had not really explored his other books. Jon Klassen and Mac Barnett have a blog - Looking at Picture Books - and they recently discussed his book Shortcut - and then I found this one at the used book store for 49 cents! I am happy that I now know a lot more about Donald Crews than I did a few days ago. I highly recommend the blog - it is on Substack and if you are a fan of picture books - it will blow your mind!

[Cheryl A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

LFL find.
Hard to date from picture clues. My grandma (white, Wisconsin) lived on a farm with about this level of development until the 1970s. And the comfortable way the family interacts with the white train conductor doesn't speak to the Jim Crow era.

But Crews was born in 1938, and this was an homage to his childhood, so obviously it does take place in the late 4os or early 50s. And the book was first published in 1991. Fwiw.

The main theme is not history so much, but family. Don't miss the last page.

[Jillian Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one right before summer break to get a discussion going about summer plans. This story is about the kids going to visit their grandparents in the summer. Ordinary summer days that make them extraordinary now as memories. Could be paired with Two Boys Have the Best Summer Ever or When I Was Young in the Mountains.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young boy, with his mother, sisters, and brother, travelled by train every year to spend the summer with their grandparents - Bigmama and Bigpapa - and their extended family. It was a fun time in the country where nothing seemed to change, just the way they liked it.

[Chui Ying · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book about diversity to add to the school library. A story about an African-American family going on a train to visit their grandmother in Florida. A good book to introduce racial diversity and the commonality of the human experience to young readers.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many of my kids at my story times could relate to this story as many had family in the south that they went to visit. Others could relate as they visited grandparents in the Caribbean and visited yearly. Great, bold illustrations.

[Sierra Barnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so special. If you have a grandmother, if you grew up in rural country America this book will bring you back home. It is a loving ode to another time, to a childhood memory and to the uniqueness of your grandparent's house. <3

[Iggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Donald Crews, a black author, recalls the summers he spent during his childhood with his family visiting their grandma's Bigmama. They play outside all day and look at the stars at night. This book shows students that all people have lots of different experiences.

[Ashley Moser · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nostalgic boom about visiting grandma’s house and having a family dinner. Brings up memories of all the places to explore when visiting your grandparents’ house. Also teaches the importance of family. Quick read.

[Hannah Klumb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a well written and illustrated book that a lot of people can relate to.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE CLASS LOVED THIS BOOK

[Mellanie C · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book reminded of summers with my granny.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story!