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Nanaville
Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting | Anna Quindlen
5 posts | 5 read | 3 to read
A bighearted book of wisdom, wit, and insight, celebrating the love and joy of being a grandmother, from the Pulitzer Prizewinning columnist and #1 New York Times bestselling author This tender book should be required reading for grandparents everywhere.Booklist (starred review) I am changing his diaper, he is kicking and complaining, his exhausted father has gone to the kitchen for a glass of water, his exhausted mother is prone on the couch. He weighs little more than a large sack of flour and yet he has laid waste to the living room: swaddles on the chair, a nursing pillow on the sofa, a car seat, a stroller. No one cares about order, he is our order, we revolve around him. And as I try to get in the creases of his thighs with a wipe, I look at his, lets be honest, largely formless face and unfocused eyes and fall in love with him. Look at him and think, well, thats taken care of, I will do anything for you as long as we both shall live, world without end, amen. Before blogs even existed, Anna Quindlen became a go-to writer on the joys and challenges of family, motherhood, and modern life, in her nationally syndicated column. Now shes taking the next step and going full nana in the pages of this lively, beautiful, and moving book about being a grandmother. Quindlen offers thoughtful and telling observations about her new role, no longer mother and decision-maker but secondary character and support to the parents of her grandson. She writes, Where I once led, I have to learn to follow. Eventually a close friend provides words to live by: Did they ask you? Candid, funny, frank, and illuminating, Quindlens singular voice has never been sharper or warmer. With the same insights she brought to motherhood in Living Out Loud and to growing older in Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake, this new nana uses her own experiences to illuminate those of many others.
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MindyK59
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I like Anna Quindlen and now that I have become a grandparent I wanted to read her book about her adventures in grandparenting. She wrote with a good mixture of humor and seriousness. At the end of some of her chapters she listed “lessons learned”. It certainly can‘t hurt if I can pick up a few hints on how to be a better grandparent.

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Suet624
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I was grumpy going into this book. Quindlen has made a fortune talking about her life and for some reason that fact was bugging me. But she‘s a smart lady and I‘m a grandmother, so, okay, I‘ll check it out. Turns out she taught me a thing or two and did it with humor and a dose of kindness. Any grandmother would appreciate what she has to say. Here is Gracie May who popped a squat to talk about the sun spots on the sidewalk. Grandkids are 💕💕.

AmyG What a cute picture. She matches the leaves! ❤️🍁 4y
Cortg Love her red hair! Enjoy every minute with her, she's precious!
4y
ljuliel I agree , her hair is so pretty. 4y
See All 17 Comments
Suet624 @AmyG Haha. She does! 4y
Suet624 @Cortg @ljuliel people actually yell out their car window to me, saying how much they love her hair. Her mom says folks used to do the same thing to her. 4y
LeahBergen Lovely photo! 💕💕 4y
Laura317 Precious girl! 4y
marleed So sweet! 4y
BarbaraBB Gorgeous pic 😍. And I‘ve loved some Anna Quindlen books decades ago! 4y
batsy How precious! This photo is beautiful. 4y
Reggie That‘s a beautiful pic!!! Have you ever read Black and Blue by her? That book is one of the first books to make me feel an empty pit of sadness. 4y
ValerieAndBooks I love her hair, in case you didn‘t know 😊. My daughter ‘s girlfriend has red hair too, although its darker (almost auburn). 4y
Smrloomis Look at that hair 😍😍😍 4y
kspenmoll Gorgeous photo of your sweet Grace! 4y
Suet624 @Reggie Yes, I read Black and Blue. At the time it seemed like such a different book for her to write. I had been reading her columns and wasn't used to her writing such a devastating book. She used to bring tears to my eyes because she touched a sweet spot in my heart. The tears from reading B&B were from sadness. 4y
Suet624 @ValerieAndBooks Have I already mentioned that people in cars will yell out the window about how much they love her hair? 4y
ValerieAndBooks @Suet624 I can totally believe people would do that. Her hair is gorgeous! 4y
54 likes17 comments
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TheHeartlandBookFairy
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I listened to this quick three disc audiobook while running errands and commuting to work. Such a sweet insightful commentary on grandmotherhood ? I really enjoyed listening to Anna Quinlan reading this and one of the fun parts was talking about all the different names for Grandma ? I became "Nonnie" (pronounced Nah-knee) not quite 2 years ago and will add one more grandbaby to that this December. If you're a grandma, what are you called? ♥️

ravenlee My daughter has Gramma and Nana. A friend of mine was GiGi. Another friend has Meemaw. Mine were Grandma and Gram. 5y
TheHeartlandBookFairy @ravenlee , it seems the list is long in the possibilities and less. I love how personalized so many of the names are. In the book she talks about how She is a nana and it's just a mashup of the letters in her first name (Anna). She said she has another friend whose first name is Ronnie and she is Nonnie. 😁 5y
Suet624 For some reason I am called Gaa-gee. One grandchild called me that and now all parents and kids I babysit call me that. 4y
20 likes4 comments
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KathyWheeler
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I enjoyed this collection of essays on how Anna Quindlen negotiated grandmotherhood and the lessons she learned along the way. This is my favorite pic of my son (who is a better father than he thinks) and my granddaughter.

Megabooks 💜💜💜 5y
Suet624 What a beautiful photo. 4y
KathyWheeler @Suet624 Thank you. It really encapsulates their relationship to me. 4y
26 likes1 stack add3 comments
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KathyWheeler
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Not up to much that‘s deep or depressing tonight and I finished Checked Out, so no Grapes of Wrath for me. Instead, I‘m settling down with Anna Quindlen‘s book about becoming a grandma.