Grandmother School

Book excerpt: Key Selling Points Based on a true story from Phangane village in India’s Maharashtra state, where grandmothers attend the Aajibaichi Shala (school for grandmothers). For many of them, this has been their first time in a classroom. Explores how important education is, especially for girls and women who have historically been left behind. Ellen Rooney’s bright and vivid illustrations shine as this book moves through the effects that the opportunity for education has had on one grandmother. The author dedicated this book to her own grandmother, who never had the chance to go to school. This book encourages readers to think critically about why education has historically been withheld from women and about gender inequality overall, as well as to consider what basic human rights and needs are. Grandmother School was the winner of the 2021 Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize.