Quiet Time with My Seeya

by Dinalie Dabarera, Dinalie Dabarera (Illustrator)

Overview

A lush and endearing picture book about the special days a child spends with her Sinhalese grandfather, her Seeya, despite their language barrier.

Sometimes, the moments that Sona spends with her seeya are quiet. They speak different languages and don't always use words. But they do communicate in other ways.

Sometimes, they're loud. They play dress-up, stomp in puddles, and pretend to be puppies. They cook pittu, tease each other when they're messy, and read to each other, even though they might not understand what the other is saying.

Any time that Sona and Seeya share is special, whether quiet or loud, because they get to spend it together.

Dinalie Dabarera's debut picture book is an achingly tender meditation on the unconditional love that can transcend all languages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250322883
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	03/07/2023
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
File size:	55 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

Dinalie Dabarera is the author and illustrator of Quiet Time with Seeya. Her previous book The Cat with the Coloured Tail, written by Gillian Mears, was nominated for the Children’s Book Council Australia Award for New Illustrator, as well as multiple other industry awards including an Australian Book Industry Award. She lives and works on unceded Gadigal land (Sydney, Australia).

Editorial Reviews

★ 05/01/2023

In Australian author-illustrator Dabarera’s endearing picture book, a narrating child and their grandfather, both portrayed with brown skin, express fondness in ways that rise above verbal communication’s constraints. “Time with my seeya is quiet time,” explains the young narrator, curled up at the feet of their white-bearded grandfather. “Mum says that’s because Seeya and I speak different languages. But that doesn’t matter to us, because my seeya and I like all the same things.” These shared interests—playing dress-up, puddle-stomping, bug-finding, gardening, and beating video game baddies—are depicted in sweetly affectionate, lavish colored pencil scenes whose visible grain summons a velvety dimensionality. Throughout, onomatopoeic phrases get to the root of the duo’s emotional reactions and their tenderly rendered bond, which offers an image of camaraderie and relative quiet as love’s true language. An author’s note, and photograph of the creator with family in Sri Lanka, concludes. Ages 3–6. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

2024 Bank Street Best Book of the Year

★ "A visually and textually gorgeous story about love in a multilingual family." —Kirkus, starred review

★ "[The art is] sweetly affectionate [with] lavish colored pencil scenes whose visible grain summons a velvety dimensionality. Throughout, onomatopoeic phrases get to the root of the duo’s emotional reactions and their tenderly rendered bond, which offers an image of camaraderie and relative quiet as love’s true language." —Publisher's Weekly, starred review

"This will resonate with intergenerational families in which linguistic and cultural differences may be an obstacle for communication—at least on the surface... [A] welcome addition to the growing canon of immigrant stories for children." —Booklist

From the Publisher

★ 2022-11-29
When it comes to grandparents and their grandchildren, love transcends language.

A child of Sri Lankan descent explains that the time they spend with their seeya (the Sinhalese word for grandfather) is “quiet,” primarily because the two speak different languages. Luckily, the pair’s commonalities more than make up for this difference. Together, they play dress-up, water the flowers in the garden, and cook traditional Sri Lankan food. Things aren’t perfect: Seeya isn’t great at video games, and when the two cook and then eat together, they always make a mess. When each character reads aloud in their own language, it’s clear that neither one understands all of the other’s words. But between riding a bicycle together, playing on the beach, and trading words during show and tell (which ends up being mostly show), they develop a syntax unique to their relationship that ensures nothing is lost in translation and that reflects their deep, abiding love. The book’s pastel palette and textured illustrations perfectly express the cozy, gentle relationship at the heart of this story. The child narrator’s lyrical voice radiates a mischievous, affectionate innocence. The story’s specificity imbues it with an intimate authenticity that immigrant families in particular will appreciate; Dabarera’s author’s note describes her own experience growing up with an immigrant grandparent whose language she didn’t fully understand. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A visually and textually gorgeous story about love in a multilingual family. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews