John the Skeleton
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From award-winning author Triinu Laan comes the heartwarming story of a beloved skeleton and all the lives he touches. Everyone deserves a quiet, restful retirement. But for John, a newly retired classroom skeleton, life is just beginning. When John is adopted by Grams and Gramps and leaves the classroom to live on their farm, every day is an exciting new adventure: John rides in the car for the first time, makes a snow angel, scares away crooks, and becomes a source of comfort for Grams, Gramps, and their grandkids. With delightful illustrations and a charming cast of characters, John the Skeleton is a quirky, touching, and unforgettable book. Triinu Laan thoughtfully weaves aging and death into the fabric of life, crafting a tender portrait of what it means to care for one another, grow old together, and appreciate the little things.
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A quiet, translated Estonian story about an old couple that integrates a retired classroom anatomy skeleton into their lives, providing themselves companionship as they work the land, entertain grandkids, and navigate old age together.
It is sweet but not without heartache. It tackles the inevitability of mortality with a tinge of hope, showing how passing down memories helps both our loved ones and culture live on.
For the weird kids who find themselves in stories like [b:The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale|60539545|The Skull A Tyrolean Folktale|Jon Klassen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1671459705l/60539545.SX50.jpg|95411730], [b:Oscar Seeks a Friend|43572576|Oscar Seeks a Friend|Paweł Pawlak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1563406743l/43572576.SX50.jpg|56511276] (translated from Polish), [b:Bog Myrtle|205063378|Bog Myrtle|Sid Sharp|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1712234568l/205063378.SX50.jpg|211055705], [b:Through the Woods|18659623|Through the Woods|Emily Carroll|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414845473l/18659623.SX50.jpg|26477611], [b:A House Called Awful End|330053|A House Called Awful End (Eddie Dickens Trilogy, #1)|Philip Ardagh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1328867483l/330053.SX50.jpg|526468], and A Series of Unfortunate Events.
It also reminded me a bit of the Dutch characters [b:Jip en Janneke|1484848|Jip en Janneke (Jip en Janneke, #1-5)|Annie M.G. Schmidt|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1253453723l/1484848.SX50.jpg|1476009]. Maybe even [b:We Are Okay|28243032|We Are Okay|Nina LaCour|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1471899036l/28243032.SY75.jpg|48277368]?
