Wilfrid Gordon was a small boy who knew all the elderly people who lived in the old people's home next door to his house. When he heard that one lady had lost her memory he went searching for some memories to give her. A sweet story with wonderfully joyful illustrations.

I adore this book--another sensitive Mem Fox story, bringing together the young and the old in a very touching way. Young Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge, who lives by a senior citizens home, helps an older woman, who has lost her memory, find some old ones through the gifts he brings her.

There is nothing purer than a friendship between a young child and an elder. The main character, Wilfred, cares deeply for his friend, Nancy, and does everything he can do to help her. Instead of offering simple regret of sympathy, he does what no one else would, he listens. Memory loss is a scary concept for kids which they often experience through older family members. This book addresses it and offers a relation to those kids.

An incredibly sweet but intensely sad story about the relationship between the very young and the very old.

I felt that the story-behind-the-story added significantly to my enjoyment of the book.

The regular contact between Wilfred and the residents of the old people's home greatly contrasts with my limited experience. We took X-man to my grandmother's nursing home and were quickly overwhelmed my dozens of elderly ladies desperate for some contact with a baby. It seems sad that today there is such paltry contact between these two groups in society.

If you planned on using this book to explain dementia to children I would be wary. While, in my extremely limited experience, I'm amazed at what dementia suffers can remember it would be tragic for your child to collect up a series of items to prompt their memory and for it not to work.

The collaboration that worked so well with Possum Magic has come together again and produced another memorable book.

This story was a sweet tale of a young boy discovering that adults can have disabilities such as memory loss. Wilfrid already related with his neighbor because they both had four names but once he heard the concern from his parents he went to investigate. It shines light on the fact that children should learn about elderly disabilities such as Alzheimer's and dementia so that they can better understand elderly people. The ending was heartfelt and touching, perfect way to wrap up the story.

I may be biased by my own childhood love of this book (I used to listen to an audio version read by Mem Fox herself) but there are so many beautiful, nostalgic things about this decades-old picture book. Julie Vivas illustrations were everywhere when I was a child, so her watercolour illustrations are iconic. But it is the beautiful tale of a young boy sparking the memories of a old woman with memory loss that awakens the warm, fuzzy feelings inside that I felt listening to this book as a child myself and now; reading the book to my daughter, who also has four names.

"Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge" by Mem Fox is another classic that has slipped by me. It's a very sweet story about a young boy whose neighbor, Miss Nancy, has "lost my memory." This is a wonderful book, again for children and adults, that creates a warm and fuzzy feeling, and provides a different perspective on growing old. A must read for everyone I know!

This may just be my favorite picture book ever. I discovered it during grad school when I worked at a children's bookstore, and it was love at first read. I don't think I have ever once read it without tearing up. When I read it to the littles yesterday, Scott had to step in near the end when I was too choked up to speak. It's a beautiful book, and true in the way that sometimes only fiction is.

Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge is a little boy who lives next to an old-age home. He is friends with all the residents and loves to visit them. When he hears his parents say how sad it is that his favorite resident, 93-year-old Miss Nancy, is losing her memory, Wilfrid Gordon quizzes all the other old folks about what a memory is exactly. "It's something warm," one tells him. "Something from long ago." "Something that makes you cry." "Something that makes you laugh." And so on.

And so Wilfrid goes off and collects a box of treasures for Miss Nancy—a warm hen egg, a funny puppet, an old medal…

It's what happens when Miss Nancy handles the gifts that always makes me cry. Perfectly lovely, and Julie Vivas's tender colored pencil drawings are as lovely and moving as the story.

(Originally posted at Here in the Bonny Glen.)

1st-2nd fiction
A touching story about making friends and helping them. This is a great way to teach students about elderly people who may have dementia as they may have grandparents with the disease. Sweet and moving plot with beautiful illustrations to follow. Overall a touching read.

Summary: "Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge" is a picture book that tells the story of a young boy who lives next to a nursing home and establishes a relationship with the elderly at the home. While at the nursing home, he makes friends with many of the residents, but creates a special friendship with Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper in which he shares all of his stories and secrets with. After learning that Miss Nancy has "lost her memory", Wilfred sets on an adventure to find her memory for her. On his expedition, he asks many of the residents what a memory is in order to help Miss Nancy find her own memory since she has lost it.

Theme: Throughout the book, the picture book relates to the themes of Dementia, Alzheimer's, relationships with the elderly, helping others and the disabled, and learning from experienced elders.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Personal Response: Personally, this is a special book that introduces the idea of dementia in a kid friendly way and how we can form special relationships with others regardless of age difference. Dementia can be a serious and sad subject, but I believe that the author did an amazing job of introducing the topic in a light-hearted, kid friendly way. The book illustrations were light and bright to help make the context uplifting rather than serious or depressing.

Why I recommend: I highly recommend this book if a child may be introduced to someone with memory loss in their life to help explain that although they may be losing their memory, they are still people that we can have special relationships with and learn from them regardless of their disability or illness. I also recommend this book for children with grandparents or friends that are elderly to show that we can learn important lessons from each other even though there may be a large age gap. I would recommend this book for young readers that will have the ability to understand the concepts and themes the author tries to convey throughout the book. The illustrations and content is brilliant in "Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge" and I highly recommend this book to teach the important themes the author beautifully conveys through the relationship of Miss Nancy and Wilfred.

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I love the illustrations and how in a simple language kids can understand a little bit about old people’s struggles with dementia/Alzheimer’s without using big words, and Wilfred gives a great example of empathy and caring!