Module 2: Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs by Tomie dePaola

a.       Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs is a story about a boy named Tommy with a grandmother and great-grandmother that he loves very much and spends a good deal of time with. He has his routines that he loves to do with them. Over time, the reader learns that Nana Upstairs passed away and a quick explanation is given on death. Tommy continues to grow and spend time with family. The story quickly cuts to an illustration where Tommy is grown up and mentions that Nana downstairs is now Nana Upstairs too, because she had died too.

b.      DePaola, T. (1973) Nana upstairs & nana downstairs. New York: Putnam.

c.       I thoroughly enjoyed Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs because it gives attention to the love that a child has for his grandparents as well as the loss experienced when one passes. This story did a good job of illustrating the absence felt by a person who has passed away.  I made me miss my maternal grandmother and relive the twinge of loss felt from a loved one who has passed on. Like the story, I also had the opportunity to meet my maternal great grandmother, although I did not have to opportunity to really get to know her as Tommy did.

d.      Wittmann, T. (2006). Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs. School Library Journal, 52(8), 54.

- Every Sunday Tommy loves to visit his grandmother, Nana Downstairs, who always seems to be in the kitchen cooking, and his great-grandmother, Nana Upstairs, who stays in her bedroom because she is 94 four years old. There's a special bond between four-year-old Tommy and Nana Upstairs that is marked by long talks and sharing mint candies. It is especially sad when his great-grandmother dies. With the help of his family. Tommy comes to understand that she is still alive in his memory. When Tommy is grown and Nana Downstairs dies, he experiences the same sadness but now feels that both women are watching over him as stars in the sky. Author Tomie DePaola reads his moving picture book (Putnam, 1973). Sadness and love are heard in the different voices as he narrates the story that is based on his childhood. The instrumental background music fits the changing mood of the story. Youngsters can listen to the story with or without page-turn signals. A quality recording that introduces the concept of death to young children.

e.       Libraries can keep up with special dates throughout the year like the Day of the Dead. I would try to feature books like Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs, where death is tactfully explained and easy to understand by children. A display or special bookshelf with these books would be easy to create in the hall outside the library.