ohn loves to spend time with his grandparents. This is a special story of a little boy who is attached to his blind grandfather and learns to "see" the way in which his grandfather does. Through quiet listening, his grandfather shows John how to feel the time of day, how to name the specific flowers by smell, and how to see through the way in which the wind blows. There are many ways in which his grandfather influences him with a deep shared love.

I particularly like the way in which this author paints a story of family love, of time spent together reading, feeling the sun, the wind, and knowing despite challenges, life can be very good indeed.

Another wonderful book by this author who never fails to touch the heart through her remarkable ability to paint images of life lived in love and meaning. ( )

John's favorite house is his grandfather's -- not because it is fancy or new but because he sees it through his Grandpa's eyes. Grandpa is blind, and so when John visits him he gets to see things from a new perspective. This house is the place where John gets to experience the special way Grandpa sees and moves in the world.

I knew I would like this book just after hearing the first page. I like that her grandfather being blind wasn't the first thing mentioned and that it described the way he experiences thing as simply different. This book is filled with the different ways the grandfather experiences life. I like that the grandson tries to do all his activities with him. I think it would be good to have the students try along with the characters just to experience it, it could help give them perspective and maybe treat blind classmates and others kinder. I also enjoy that this book doesn't handicap the grandfather, he lives his life just as we do. ( )

This story is beautiful and amazing about a young boy and his grandpa. John's favorite house was his grandpa's because he can see it through his eyes. John believes his friend Peter and Maggie have fine houses, but his grandpa's house is the best. His grandpa is blind, so he can't see the house the way John does. His grandpa has a different way of seeing things. John closed his eyes by seeing the world through his other senses, which are smell, touch, taste, and hear just like his grandpa. His grandpa would wake up every morning for breakfast. John is amazed by his grandpa's daily activities because he wonders how he does all those activities. I love how John and his grandpa played the cello, and they went outside to listen to the birds. At the end of the story, I love it when his grandpa tries to turn off the light, instead, he turns it on. John smiled and waited until he left to turn it off. I believe the theme of this story is love and admiration because the grandson has so much love for his grandpa, he loves visiting him, and he admires what his grandpa do. Blindness didn't stop the grandpa from doing activities in his daily life. I know the children would enjoy this story. ( )

This was a very touching butt. It was very sweet how John, the little boy, would close his eyes and see things the way his grandpa sees them by listening. The book makes sure to show his grandpa in a very good light by showing how independent he is. He even got things right just by listening when John got them wrong seeing. I would definitely have this book in my classroom and read it to my students. However, it is a long book so I would have to read the book in sections at different times for the younger students. ( )