And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman

And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer by Fredrik Backman is a novella that was published in 2016. Backman never lets me down. I've read all but one of his published books and have enjoyed every single word.

This sweet novella is about a grandfather and his grandson. The grandfather is getting older and is suffering from dementia. Noah, the grandson, is trying hard to understand what is happening to his grandpa. They share the love of math, but Noah's father loves music. The grandfather has invited Noah into his brain. This multi-generational story shows the love that encompasses our families even when we are different.

The visual aspect of this story is beautiful. There are simple illustrations, yet the words themselves seem to illustrate the story even more than the pictures that were drawn by Ella Laytham. The illustrations add a gentle touch to this book.

Quotes I liked:

Grandfather - "How do I explain to him that I'm going to be leaving him even before I die?" page 11

In reference to his brain - "It rained for a long time here when your grandma died. I never quite got it back in order after that." page 24.

In reference to Noah, "He's so tall now; his feet are going to reach all the way to the ground soon" (36).

"That's why we get the chance to spoil our grandchildren because by doing that we're apologizing to our children" (66).

"The amount I love you, Noah, the sky will never be that big" (69).

"What can we do for Grandpa? We can walk down the road with him. We can keep him company" (69-71).

I love this book because it is a love letter to a grandfather, a father, and a grandchild. Backman shows tenderness and feelings so well. His characters always seem to come off the page and walk right into your home. May he have a long and prosperous writing career.

Link to our NICU book registry if you'd like to donate books to babies in the newborn intensive care unit so their parents can read to them while they grow. You can also donate gently used books to our project by sending them to me or to Angie. Email me for a mailing address. We can use both English and Spanish books. If you have a graduate of the NICU, or if you have a baby whose life you would like to honor by donating books to this project, let me know, and I can make a book plate with their name for the books you donate.

Read to a child today even if that child is you.