• Age: 3 to 6
• Grade: p to 1

No one knows maps like Nikki — but can she get her family to Grandma's house in time?

Nikki’s family is preparing for a long road trip from Toronto to the Bronx to attend Uncle Travis's wedding. They pack their suitcases, boxes of Jamaican black cake, and most importantly to Nikki, the big map book!

Nikki loves geography and enjoys tracing the routes to all the places her relatives live — her Grandpa in Florida, her cousins in Atlanta, DC, and Boston. She daydreams of England, where other family lives, and Jamaica and Africa, where her roots run deep.

Her attention comes back to the road trip when it’s clear that Daddy’s taken a wrong turn. “I can help!” says Nikki, who proves to be an excellent navigator. She guides them back to the Bronx Expressway, under the elevated subway tracks, onto a street of brown row houses and safely to Grandma’s.

Inspired by the childhoods of author Nadia L. Hohn and illustrator TeMika Grooms, Getting Us to Grandma’s is full of fun historic details — a world before Google Maps! — and authentic cultural moments shared by diasporic families, whose stories can be traced across continents. A fantastic representation of Black girls in STEM.

Key Text Features

Illustrations

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.6

With prompting and support, name the author and illustrator of a story and define the role of each in telling the story.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7

Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

NADIA L. HOHN is a writer and educator. Her first picture book, Malaika’s Costume, won the Helen Isobel Sissons Canadian Children’s Story Award and the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) Children’s Literature Award. She is also the author of Malaika’s Winter Carnival and Malaika’s Surprise, both illustrated by Irene Luxbacher; A Likkle Miss Lou: How Jamaican Poet Louise Bennett Coverley Found Her Voice, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes; Harriet Tubman: Freedom Fighter, illustrated by Gustavo Mazali; and two titles in the Sankofa series — Music and Media. Nadia’s writing is inspired by her childhood memories, Jamaican heritage, Black culture, world travels, and social issues. She lives in Toronto.

Nadia L. Hohn's profile page

TEMIKA GROOMS is a writer and illustrator with a passion for creating stories for young readers. She grew up reading comics and books by Shel Silverstein and honed her artistic training in traditional fine art. TeMika’s first picture book, Put Your Shoes On & Get Ready! was written by Senator Raphael G. Warnock. TeMika lives on the outskirts of Atlanta, Georgia, with her cat and her two daughters, whom she affectionately calls Thing One and Thing Two.

TeMika Grooms' profile page

An affirming family story featuring a smart young woman.

School Library Journal

The paint-like artwork adds an element of a classic picture book feel to a story not seen often.

Canadian Children's Book News