Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships in Turkish Children’s Novels

In this study, it is aimed to investigate what characteristics of the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren, which takes an important place in the establishment of strong family relations in the society life, are reflected in children’s novels. The novels having the concepts such as “dede (grandpa), nine (grannie)” for grandparents in their titles are included in the study. Document analysis technique was used in the study, while the data were analyzed by using the content analysis technique. The grandparents are the parents of the father in 6 of the 9 novels that were examined. In the novels, grandparent-grandchild relationship involves strong feelings such as love and pride while living in the same house or in different houses do not affect this relationship negatively. Grandmothers are more actively involved in cultural transmission while grandfathers are more actively involved in transferring value. Making the grandchildren establish relationship with the literary genres encourages them to read. If we assume that the children develop listening abilities by listening to literary genres and speaking abilities by telling the stories they listened to, then it can be said that grandparents contribute to the development of their grandchildren’s basic language abilities.


Introduction
Family is the basic unit that forms the society. It is the family environment where the values, principles, rules and so on that the society adopts are learnt. In this regard, family is accepted as the nature and essence of the society [1]. Cansel [2] expresses the importance of the institution of family by saying "Family is the environment that meets various needs of the people who lives in it. These might be the needs to create physical values such as nutrition, physiological values such as fertility, and moral values such as culture and education. Satisfying the needs, which regard all the people in the society, under the umbrella of family unit sufficiently makes the generations gain strength, enrich the physical and sentimental values and transfer these into the next generations." It is common in every society that the family institution that can carry different characteristics depending on the societies, is a unit in which "social values, norms and statutes are transmitted, social and psychological satisfaction of its members are met, culture and particularly language is learned, the individual is socialized, social relations are learned and passed down, production and consumption are shared." [3]. When we look at the day-to-day development of the family from the past till today, it is seen that the structure of the large and patriarchal family changed due to the urbanization and modern living conditions and that the nuclear family unit has become prominent these days. According to the literature, this causes that both family relations weaken and the family controls and represses over the family members [1]. In Turkish society, it can be said that the strong family ties continue to be considerable and also the extended family unit still continues even though the nuclear family tends to spread. In the creation of these ties, grandparents and family elders have an important place.
Especially the increase in the number of working mothers together with the modern life has also increased the responsibilities of the grandparents for meeting several needs of the children such as caring, love, education and so on. "Old people are essential elements of the family in the social structure and have a quite effective place in raising and educating children/grandchildren." [4].
According to the literature [5,6], love of grandchildren has a distinct place in the traditional structure of the Turkish society. Having a grandchild is a special case for each grandmother and grandfather. The time spent with the grandchild, playing with him/her, caressing him/her, sometimes helping in his/her care are pleasing experiences for grandparents. Especially in today's families, in which both parents work, children spend their days under the supervision of a family elder while their parents are at work This demonstrates the importance of the grandparents' role on the child's development. Demiriz and Arpacı [5], emphasize that this 'being with a grandparent' situation is so important in terms that a safe environment for the child is provided, grandparents form a model for him/her and they support his/her development and education.
Arpacı and Tezel Şahin [4] explained the importance of grandparents in the family while emphasizing that "their life experiences are always beneficial for young people, their existence will make the family stronger and happier, they are indispensable components from whom both family and the society will benefit and who may be a guide and have new responsibilities in the future". Therefore, grandchild-grandparent relationship is important in the family. This relationship has many positive aspects for both sides. Hazer [7] states that grandparents, who could not afford time and attention to their own children in the past because they had to work then, are satisfied with providing this interest and time to their grandchild, and that being a grandparent can be a source of happiness and sufficiency for them. He also emphasizes that positive relationships between grandparents and grandchildren can mutually strengthen emotional ties between them in many points such as "learning new thoughts, interchanging emotions, enhancing personality, pride, sense of responsibility, enjoyment and appreciation".
The studies in the literature indicate that grandparents are more tolerant of their grandchildren and that they cherish them; therefore, they do not experience conflicts with their grandchildren as they had with their children in the past. In this regard, grandparents can also be effective in solving the problems that their grandchildren have with their parents [7,8]. In addition, grandparents, who are important members of the family system; are effective on the issues that meeting their grandchildren's needs such as caring for them, love, compassion, getting information, forming friendship and so on, supporting them financially, transferring culture and moral values to younger generations, and so on.
"The investigations show that in the age of elderliness, the exchange of love in intergenerational relations and interactions have intensified with the newly established family ties and the role of grandparents. It is also understood that the elders contribute to the lives of young people by sharing their experiences and by utilizing their own accumulations. " [8] "... the elders have an important role in ensuring the family traditions while maintaining values and preparing the next generations for the future well." [7] The number of scientific investigations on the grandparent-grandchild relationship is not sufficient for its importance. Research related to the topic ( [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [19], [20], [21] etc.) usually carries the field survey feature. As a result of the examinations that made, there was no study showing how the relation of the grandparent-grandchild relationship is reflected in literature or children's literature. Therefore, there is a need for new work to address the issue. In this research, it is aimed to contribute to the elimination of deficiencies in this area by taking into account the characteristics of grandparent-grandchildren relations reflected in Turkish children's novels.

Research Design
In this study, document analysis technique was used as a qualitative research method. Document analysis includes the analysis of written materials that contains information about facts or phenomena intended to be investigated. In such studies, the researcher is able to obtain the needed data without having to make observations or negotiations [9].

The Documents
In this study nine novels -it was written for children and addressed to children over ten years-that include the concepts such as "dede (grandpa), nine (grannie)" related to grandparents in their titles are examined as documents in this study.

Analysis of the Data
The data were analyzed by using content analysis. Content analysis is a method by which similar data are grouped together within the framework of specific concepts and themes, and are organized in an understandable way to help interpretation [9]. The books were examined in terms of grandparent-grandchild relationship, the data revealing this relationship were identified and the data in the similar context was coded. Main and sub-themes have been created in the direction of the specified codes and all data groups have been exemplified with books.

Demographic Characteristics of Grandparents and
Grandchildren in Children's Novels

Granparents
It was found that the grandparents in the six of the nine children's novels that were examined were the parents of the father.
Can Dede has been in Izmir for a long time? He usually has a good time with his grandchildren but he has also started to miss his village. His son and daughter-in-law, who have sensed his homesick feelings, drive him around at the weekends. [10].
-Dear wife, he said. Doğan Can's father used to have a bicycle [11].
In the four of the novels (Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları, Dedem Çocuk Oldu, Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu and Gemici Dedem), which included the father's parent, the grandparent whose relationship with the grandchildren was presented was "the grandfathers". In these works, it is seen that the grandmother passed away and the grandfather sometimes live with his children. In the other two works (Benim Dedem Bir Tane, Ninemin Yemekleri Dedemin Oyuncakları), both of the grandparents and grandmothers take place together.
The mother's parents are included in the two of the novels. In the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, the grandmother whose husband passed away took place while in the Dedem Uzaylı, both grandparents are included together.
-Here is your grandpa's house, Aykut. ... The car stopped. My granny appeared first.
-My Elif has come. By the way, Elif is my mother [12].
In the Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı, whose parent was the grandfather was not stated. Since he is alone, it is understood that he lost his wife, too. Therefore, he usually lives with his children and grandchildren.
When we examine the age and occupation of the grandparents; in the Gemici Dedem (Sailor Grandpa,) it is stated that the grandfather retired as the captain of a ship and he is over 70 years old. In the Ninemin Yemekleri Dedemin Oyuncakları, the grandparents were retired, the grandfather is over 70 years old while the age of the grandmother is not clearly explained.
Grandpa and grandma were retired. But I did not know exactly where they were retired from. [11].
In the Benim Dedem Bir Tane, the grandfather was a writer, by profession, and the grandmother was a teacher. Grandma is now a retired. However, their age is not clearly indicated. Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı also does not say the age of the grandfather, who is a glass master.
Grandpa is a glazier. Don't just think of a window or a balcony window, his work is different. My grandpa is a glass master. He makes long vases, ragged sugar bowl, and carafes like swans. [13] In the Dedem Çocuk Oldu, even though the age and profession are not indicated, the information that the grandfather is retired is stated. The age and profession of the grandparent is not mentioned in the " Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu (looking after animals in the village), Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları (looking after animals in the village), and Yaşasın Anneanne Spor".

Grandchildren
The grandchildren who communicate with the grandparents are boys in the eight of the nine novels examined. There is a granddaughter in only Benim Dedem Bir Tane. In this work, Tarik Dursun Kakinç describes his true granddaughter, Almila (also partly her sister Alara). The process from the birth of Almila until her beginning to school are presented around the memorials.
There are two characters who are Gönen and Serkan in the Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları, there are two grandsons who are still students in the Dedem Çocuk Oldu (Bülent and levent); the Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu has two characters (Yağmur, Güneş) and lastly there are one grandson and granddaughter who are students (one older sister and Metin), (but the main character is the grandson) in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor; Actually, I'm not even at the age of eleven. It's a little smaller ... It's like ten and a half years old. [14].

Grandparents-Grandchildren Meeting Frequency
In seven novels, grandparents and grandchildren live in separate houses. In the five of these books, the meeting usually takes place during holidays or when the grandparents visit their grandchildren since they live in a separate city. In the Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları, the grandchildren live in İzmir and the grandfather lives in another city which is far away and takes a long time by bus. He sometimes goes to İzmir and visits his son and stays for a while (20 days or 1 month). His grandchildren visits him at summer holidays. They are also in contact with via communication tools such as telephone and letter when they are separated. Therefore, they have strong ties despite not seeing each other often.
Can Dede did not use to like writing letters this much. He spent that winter writing many letters 2050 Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships in Turkish Children's Novels like this. Gönen and Serkan did not leave their grandparents without letters. [10] In the novel Dedem Çocuk Oldu, the grandfather lives in the village; while his son and grandchildren live in the city. He stays with them in the winter, and he comes back to the village when he got homesick. They communicate with each other by letters when they are separated. In this sense, even though they are not constantly together, they can see each other during the holidays or when the grandfather pays a visit to them.
After a while, my naughty grandpa went to the village. His letter came at the point when we missed him very much. [15].
In Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu, the grandfather also occasionally visits his grandchildren.
As for my grandpa... Although we have little seen the face of our grandfather, who lives in a city in the south which is far away from us, for three years now. Yağmur and I love him too. [14].
In the novel called Dedem Uzaylı, the grandchildren live in the city and the grandfather lives in the village, therefore they do not often see each other. For this reason, the grandparent and the grandchild do not know each other very well. After the last holiday, however, the grandparent-grandchild relationship becomes stronger.   [12].
The grandfather and the grandson do not know each other because of the problems between the father and grandfather in the Gemici Dedem. However, one day, the grandfather comes and they meet by chance. After that, they sometimes meet. The child loves his grandfather so much and he attaches himself to him. When the father and the grandfather kiss and make up, they built a place for the grandfather in garden and they start living together.
I still could not understand why my grandpa visit our home, he talked with my father, and my father sent him out like throwing him out of the house. Especially why he didn't tell me "this man is your grandfather". [16]. 'Yay! He could not be a good father, but I felt he could be a good grandfather. " [16] In the Ninemin Yemekleri Dedemin Oyuncakları, the grandparents live in the village. The child spends the summer holidays with his grandmother and grandfather, and meanwhile, all the needs of the child are met by the grandparents.
My mom and dad cannot be with us because they work during the summer. Last summer, I stayed with my grandparents for a while. [11].
The grandparents and the grandchildren live in the same house in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor and Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı. The mother and the father work in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, and the general needs of the children are met by the grandmother. In the Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı, although the grandfather and grandchild live in the same house, the grandfather works in the daytime since he is a glass master. They spend time together in the shop outside the house, and they keep company for each other.

Grandparents-Grandchildren Relationship in the
Children's Novels

The Basic Feelings Based on the Grandparents-Grandchildren Relationship
It has been found that the grandparent-grandchild relationship is based on feelings of love/ affection and pride in the novels.

Love/Affection
In all of the novels, there are strong feelings of love and affection in the grandchildren and grandparent relationships. Only in the Dedem Uzaylı, since the grandfather and the grandchild do not meet very often, some distance is felt in their relationship but the events show that the relationship includes love.
Alara was asleep with the affection of her grandmother while the other kids were eating portions of cake. [17] Everyone laughed at our words. My grandfather was laughing the most: He said, 'You little rascals, look at you, how they are making fun of me!' he hugged us and kissed us both. [15]. 'What do you think? My grandpa is precious, very precious. You don't even know the bond between us; me and my grandpa. ... ' [14].
-"Don't be upset, Dogan can", my grannie consoled me. She bent and kissed on my cheeks. ... I ran up and hugged my grandpa's neck. [11]. We laughed at our situation and hugged. I caressed his hair and hugged him: I woke up with kisses, my grandmother was kissing me in the morning. [18].
-Yeah, really. Your grandfather is a very good man. All the villagers love him very much. I suddenly visualized my grandfather. I was proud of him. [12]. When he opened his mouth, and started talking about his captain days. This time, I wanted to shout, 'this man is my grandpa!'... The teacher listened to my grandpa enthusiastically as if he listened to a singer whom he admires. [16].
In the Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı, Onur admires his grandfather's profession (glass mastery). When he grows up, he chooses a similar profession. The events show that Onur is proud of his grandfather's art work products.
I took one of the cups my grandpa made with his magical hands. My mother would hardly use them because they are fragile. But, I would reach out to them stubbornly. [13].
In the novel called Ninemin Yemekleri, Dedemin Oyuncakları the grandchild also likes the grandmother's food. The grandmother comes in second in the food race. It can be said that this is not a surprising result since they have already been expecting this and that they are proud of their grandmother's success. In the same way, the fact that the grandchild proposes his grandfather to join the toy making contest makes us think that he trusts his grandfather very much in this matter and he is very proud of him.
Even though it is not mentioned in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor in the same way, the events in the novel point out that the grandchild is proud of his grandmother, too.
Akın stopped and yelled constantly: 'As long as Aunt Hikmet plays at the back position, the ball is never headed into the goal. Because Aunt Hikmet is a huge rock! The ones that hit him breaks out ...' I was really amazed at my grandma that day. She was neither tired, nor said 'puffed', nor said 'it hurts ...' [18].

Responsibilities of Grandparents in Grandchildren's Lives
It is known that, grandparents have many responsibilities of their grandchildren in line with their general needs such as care, education, play / entertainment / keeping company and so on. Below are the subtitles and examples related to these topics in the children's novels examined:

Care and Maintenance of Health / Grandparents as Babysitters
The most important needs of the grandchildren that the grandparents mind the most are care, nutrition, hygiene, etc. and therefore the maintenance of their health. In the seven of the nine novels, the grandparents care the nursing and health of the grandchildren. In the five of these novels, the responsibility for nursing and health care belongs to the grandmother (mother of the father or the mother).  [11].
In addition, when we look at the foods that grandparents prepare, it is seen that they are also efficient at healthy nutrition and that they usually serve their grandchildren healthy, delicious and traditional food prepared at home.
Grandma also makes the pickle. We never buy pickles from the market. Her pickles are so delicious, we enjoy eating them. [18].
In the Gemici Dedem, both grandmothers (mother of the mother and the father) usually seem to be remembered with food (and food shopping) matters.
My mind is just like my mother's vegetable soup. ... I even searched my grandmother's cake recipes book with a fine-tooth comb. [16]. However, the grandfathers sometimes take responsibility for this issue. Grandpa Can panicked: 1 A sweet made of unsalted cheese 2052 Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships in Turkish Children's Novels You will be sick Gonen, how do you drink water when you are sweaty? [10].
The responsibility for cooking and feeding often belong to grandmothers while it's the grandfathers who make the grandchildren happy by giving them food such as "chocolate, sweets, etc.", which the children like very much.
-There's always something in their pockets. Gum, chocolate, candies ... [10]. He caressed our head. He took some sugar out of his pocket and gave them to us. [15].

Dealing with Education life / Their place as a teacher
Under this title, it is covered that grandparents help their grandchildren with their activities such as homework, giving them information, supporting their education with the information they provide and contributing towards their preparation for the life.
Helping with the activities taking place at school and homework, and checking homework; in the Gemici Dedem the grandfather helps the grandchildren who is not very talented at and willing to drawing. He even influences their interest in painting positively by giving advice on drawing.
'So, are you going to get a bad grade from painting? I can help you if you want. What is theme of the picture? ' [16].
In the same work, the grandfather contributed to a stage play, which was prepared by the school teacher and the students, as a retired ship captain with his knowledge. The grandchildren's role is enhanced by these contributions. Thus, grandparents contribute to the education life of the grandchildren with their knowledge and experiences.
The teacher rewrote the play in the way the grandfather told. Now I have an important and big role. [16].
In the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, Grandma also deals with the grandchildren's assignments. She especially makes sure that the assignments are done on time.
My grannie asked so many times: 'Child, is it all done? Have you finished your homework? [18].
Providing information to the grandchildren like a teacher/Supporting their education and preparing them for the life with the information they provided; there are examples of the related topic in all of the novels. Grandparents seem to make up their grandchildren's lack of information (especially nature, plants and animals) and increase their world knowledge by providing them some information. The responsibility for transferring information to the grandchildren is mostly on the grandfather.
-Cows have many benefits to people. I hung on every word he said.
-they give milk, they give meat ... -We should be more beneficial if a cow has such benefitsl. [12]. Grandpa supported Grannie's words: -The vitamins will die when the seed is roosted. The pumpkin seed should be raw. It's always worth it. Especially it is used against taeniae. ... -"The pumpkins are durable", said Grannie."" I hang them in the attic of our house. They will dry up there and get sweet". [11]. "The butterflies have antennae on their heads", said Grandpa, "they smell, touch, and perceive the environment with it". [11]. In the Grandpa's Red Truck, education of the grandchildren is supported not only by giving information but also by financial aid. Recently, hasn't he said " Kids, how many years will I live? That vineyard is yours. You will use it for the education of my grandchildren after I die"? [14].
In the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, some information (how is the food, pasta, yogurt, pickles, etc. are made?) that is related to "food" is under the responsibility of the grandmothers.
Grandmother's pasta is also very nice. She taught me how to make it. [18].
In the same work, it is stated that the grandmother guided them like a teacher, as a quote from the grandchildren.
The information mentioned is not related to school life, but to the soccer game, that is the play world of the children.
He acts directly like a teacher / coach to the children who ask for help about the football exercises: Aa-aa grandmother has just become a teacher. "Look, boys, I left a lot of sweaters to be knitted at home, I stopped cooking, I could lay down my legs and rest, I stopped it, too. I've come here to exercise you. ... You will always listen to me, will you? ' [18].
It is mostly grandparents who perform the act of giving information as provided in the examples above. However, the opposite is true for the Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları and Dedem Çocuk Oldu. In these works, information is not always given from grandfathers to the grandchildren, but sometimes it is vice versa; i.e. that the grandchildren enlightened the grandfathers in the matters that they do not know. In particular, some of the innovations brought on by the current technological era and the information gaps that arise due to the lack of education are covered by the information provided by the grandchildren.
I showed the solar system on the first pages of the Atlas. He was amazed by that the world looks tiny. I showed the mountains, seas and the countries on the world map. I told him the continents. I told him the poles and that day and night lasted for six months there. ... With the pleasure of teaching grandpa: 'Well done grandpa, I give you a five,' I said. [15].
Grandparents sometimes transmit information directly to their grandchildren, and sometimes they become model to them with their behaviors so that they gain some knowledge and values and prepare for the life. In the Dedem Çocuk Oldu, the grandfather wants to enroll at school in order to increase his knowledge. When his request is not done, he tries to read books at home and makes up for his information deficiency. His interest in reading and learning also affects the grandchildren and they start to read books at home.
Grandpa sat in his corner with his books. He was reading without stopping. His interest in reading has passed on to us. As soon as we finished our assignments, we used to take our books and read. [15].
In addition, buying a gift for his daughter-in-law on her birthday and making her happy show the importance of the kind thought in human life. The following statements show that grandfather is a model for his grandchildren with this behavior.
My mother is still surprised. 'Dear father, why did you bother? Was it necessary? " ... "Thank you very much, father, Thank you so much for thinking about me."... It should be nice to think about others, I understand it in that way. [15].
In the novel, Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı, the grandfather is a glass master. Although he cannot earn much from his work, he enjoys his job. He is also hard-working. The grandfather becomes a model with these characteristics for the grandchildren. He even has an impact on their career choice and success. Now I do product designing in a glass factory, even if I do not pursue this art. There are those who find my drawings successful. I think I owe my success to my grandpa. [13].
In the Dedem Uzaylı, the grandfather is a model for his grandchildren with his love and helpfulness especially for animals. It is understood from the novel that it is more effective to gain these values with behaviors than oral explanations.  [12].
In the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, the grandmother exhibited model sports behaviors when she became a football team coach. She becomes a model for both her grandchildren and other children by both verbally and in practice.
'Get up, get up, join me, a good footballer wakes up early, he immediately does gymnastics' she said. [18].  [18] Grandparents seem to help their grandchildren solve and cope with their problems and therefore prepare them for life. In the Benim Dedem Bir Tane, the grandmother help her grandchild cope with his problem by helping him overcome his fear of motorcycle. Thus, she prepares him for life. This shows that grandparents are important not only in providing scientific information but also in making them acquire skills such as problem solving.  [17].
In the Dedem Çocuk Oldu, the grandfather goes to the football stadium and stands upon his rights by protesting those who jumps the queue without waiting. Thus, he not only teaches his grandchildren to demand justice but also shows them that the behavior is disrespectful to those who wait in line. Therefore, he prepares them for life by contributing to their social development.
'It's a shame, son! We're in the queue here. There are people waiting for hours. How can you jump the queue? ' [15].
In the Gemici Dedem, the grandfather makes a number 2054 Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships in Turkish Children's Novels of suggestions that can help the grandchildren who are not so successful in painting. After they study together, the grandchildren seem to overcome the problem with painting and draw beautiful pictures.
'Well ... My drawing skill is very bad.' 'Oh! Why? Don't you dream? '... 'Try my way once. Make up a story before you draw. Then put this story in your mind roughly in the paper. The rest will be the part that you will elaborate. I think drawing without making up a story will fail. ... My teacher liked my paintings very much. Although he suspected that I made it, he smiled suspiciously when I said "I know how to paint now," [16].
It is seen that the grandmother prepares the grandchildren for life and have positive effects on their social development with the advices she has given in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor. Besides, when they encounter with problems, the grandmother also guides them through resolving these problems with the insights that she provided. . Grandma; 'There is beating and also being defeated in a match. The important thing is to play well, and to achieve success while playing" she said. [18]. 'Don't you guys, don't run wild' she said [18].

Grandparents' Place as Culture and Value Transmitter
It is known that grandparents have an important place in transferring the culture and the values to the younger generations. This situation is also seen in the examined novels.
Culture transfer; one of the important elements of the culture is literature. It is seen that some literary genres, especially the oral literary products which almost extinct today, are transmitted to children through grandparents in the four novels. The grandmothers are in the forefront in the transfer of literary genres.
Although the fairytale continues to be a written literary product today, telling or reading fairy tales decreased. Grandchildren seem to have a great pleasure for listening to fairytales by their grandparents. The grandparents who tell fairytales are the grandmothers while it was the grandfathers who read fairytales. This situation also fits to the fact that the essence of this 'telling fairytales' tradition is realized by "fairy tale mothers". Thus, the grandparents continue telling fairytales, which is an oral literary tradition; in addition, they teach children fairy tales, which is an important part of the culture.
'Grandma, let's tell a fairy tale, please!' ... "Once upon a time there was a Rat Suleiman. One day, this Rat Suleiman came across with a snail on his way. ... ' [17].
-Oh, Grandpa, we don't let you go. You were going to tell us tales. -I will tell it again. When you come to the village, I promise will. [10].
In the Ninemin Yemekleri, Dedemin Oyuncakları, another kind of genre that is transmitted from grandparents to grandchildren via narration is "story". The grandmother tells the stories of the food and deserts which she made and whose names her grandchild finds strange.
-I said, "Grannie, why is it called the Dulavrat2 soup?". -He said "a young bride invented this soup. Its story is as follows: On the first day of her marriage, the young woman wanted to do something nice for her husband ... [11]. "Grannie!" I said, "The name of Höşmerim is so funny". ...
-"Its story is as follows:" she said. She began to tell: -The husband who has been in military service for many years suddenly returned home. … [11].
The literary genre which attracts children's interest and which is sung by the grandfather in the Ninemin Yemekleri, Dedemin Oyuncakları was "folk song".
The genre that grandparents transmit to the grandchildren in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor is "riddle". The grandmother also applies the rules of asking riddles. This situation is important in terms of transferring the tradition.
Oh my dear grandma, she loves such riddles. Now which city am I going to give her; Izmir, Adana or Ankara? 'Grandma, İzmir will be yours, tell me what did you cook?' [18].
Traditional professions take place among the cultural elements that the grandparents transmit to their grandchildren. One of these professions is "glass mastery". In the work of Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı, the sadness is felt for the loss of this occupation. I wanted to be an artist, just like my grandpa. I saw the soft glasses like potty putty. It was exciting to add color to them, and to make various sorts of things. [13].
Value Transfer; grandparents have been found to have transferred a great number of values to their grandchildren in the novels. They are as follows: Value of Love is the most precious value mentioned in the novels. The love of nature becomes prominent and is treated as a value to be gained by the grandchildren in seven novels. While this value is transmitted by both grandparents in the Benim Dedem Bir Tane ve Ninemin Yemekleri Dedemin Oyuncakları, the grandfathers was the ones who gain it to their grandchildren in the other novels.  [14]. He has just met her, but he gave more than I gave to Pakize. He warmly hugged its branches, buds, and thin body with his whistle with his sailor song. ... my grandpa has managed to change everything down to the tree's essence softly with just a whistle,. [16].
In the five of the novels that include love for nature, the grandparents introduce the natural life which the city life does not give to their grandchildren.
Almila used visit her grandfather early in the morning. The first 'duty' belonged to the grandfather. At first, they would play in the living room, then if the weather was fine, they would go out to the garden, do gardening, stand under the trees, and look for the ants under the stones. [17]. ... I have two sheep now. Each will have lamb and you will give their names. ...

Bushy Moustache
-We will ride Akıllı (Smart), too... We will graze the lambs ... [10]. While grandpa was drawing, I and grannie were doing the garden works. We watered the peppers and the tomatoes abundantly. It was my job to hold the hose. [11].
The value of 'animal love' is identified and highlighted in the six novels. In the two of them, the grandmothers are the ones who try to transfer these values to the grandchildren while it was the grandfathers in the other novels.
"It doesn't bite me, is it? It doesn't. It does not bite you either, because snails love children [17].
-They are fun for me, son. I sometimes talk even with the chickens. I tell them when I miss you, I tell them, when I miss your mother. [10]. You make friends with the sea, with the birds, and with the sun. A person knows the language of her friend, isn't she? Son, have you ever been friends with a bird? [16].
In the Dedem Uzaylı and in the Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu 'humanity' is also emphasized in general. The grandparent who is trying to transfer the value in the Dedem Uzaylı is the grandmother while it was the grandfather in the latter.
-We should be more beneficial in the case that a cow is such beneficial to humans... -Our flesh cannot be eaten or our skin cannot be worn. We must use our intelligence and language in a nice way. My beloved grandchildren, am I wrong? -You are right grandma. We should not hurt anyone [12]. Do you know why we love it? Because it loves us so much. It is warm-hearted not only for us, but also for all the people around it. [14].
The novels Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı and Dedem Uzaylı do the values of "being hardworking and making effort" and tell the importance of working and to have something by making a great effort for it. In both of the novels, this value is transferred to the grandchildren by the grandfathers.
He  [13]. If you make effort for making the toy, you will love and protect it more. It's all like this, Can. [11].
The value of 'helping each other' takes place in the novels of Gemici Dedem and Dedem Uzaylı. It is seen that in addition to the verbal expressions, model behaviors are also effective in acquiring this value. Besides depending on this value, it is seen that the values of love and respect come to the fore. This value is also made gained by the grandfathers.
Grandpa told me about the nice things: help, love, respect ... [12]. Murat swallowed water. Grandpa made him spit the water that he swallowed quickly. [12].
The value of 'sharing' is only found in the novel of Gemici Dedem. The value is given not by grandfather's verbal expressions but by his model behaviors.
'Are you hungry? I have four meatballs. You eat the two of them, I will eat the two of them. ' [16].
In the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor, the grandmother tries to gain her grandchild hygiene with both her words and with what she does. In everyday life, cleaning is an activity that is more often under the responsibility of women. Accordingly, it is seen that the cleaning is tried to be given by the grandmothers in the only novel where this value is told.
She warned each of the children: "Hygiene comes first in sports. Go straight to the bathroom as soon as you go your homes, do you understand me? My grandma first gave me a bath then she took a shower herself. [18].
The value of 'being contented' is included in the Dedemin Sihirli Dükkânı. In addition, the value of respect for art is also emphasized.
'Of course we have respect for art, but the art doesn't feed you, master ...' Grandpa looked a little sarcastic to him. ' 'For God's sake, what a stomach? You still walk around by saying 'I'm hungry'', which means that the rents of the houses and shops that are patrimonies are not enough for you [13].

Grandparents' Place as a Friend
It is seen that grandparents also have a role as a friend at the children's lives in the novels. Playing, which is the most important activity of the children, is the most important share between the grandparents and the grandchildren. The plays increase the degree of intimacy between them and provides the establishment of a friendship relationship. Such examples are presented under the subtitle of "Play" in the section in which the activities that are done together with the grandparents and grandchildren are described. The examples emphasizing the grandparents-grandchildren friendship verbally or with model behaviors take place under this topic.
I knew that we cannot be friends with only our peers. A cat, a dog, a bird, a toy monkey become my friends, so an old man could be my friend too. [16].
As mentioned above, being in the children's world, sharing with them, making jokes; Grandpa is a total a joker, isn't he? [15]. My grandpa is as much joker as he is brave. [14].
Heart-to-heart talking, chatting My grandpa used to have a heart-to-heart talk with me secretly. He used to say to me that his business was decreasing. [13].
-"High five", I replied. We raised our hands and clapped them in the air. [11].

Having fun / playing games
Get on the ground, get up, crawl, walk on one foot, stand on four feet, walk like a goat, run like a dog, fly like a horse, tumble Apart from tumbling, he also did every move with us. [18].
Such examples sometimes makes the grandparents a friend or a child in the eyes of the children. This situation is exemplified in the seven novels. The grandparent who is the friend of the grandchildren is the grandfather in the seven of the nine novels, while it is the grandmother in the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor.

Activities that enable grandparents to have fun with their grandchildren
Activities that are done together as the representation of the friendship relationship such as playing games, making toys, reading books, going for a ride, going to a pastry shop and drawing / painting take place in the novels. Therefore, the children are having fun with their grandparents. Based on the examples provided, we can see that the going for a walk and playing soccer can be done with grandfathers and grandmothers, while all other activities are done with the grandfathers.
'Don't upset yourself Mr. Hayri, your father is a very healthy person. I think he's trying to entertain his grandchildren. ' I thought of this idea, too ... [15]. The activities that grandchildren and grandparents do together are presented under the sub-titles below.
Playing games: Play is one of the basic rights and spiritual needs of children. Playing games is influential in establishing a "friendship" relationship between grandparents and grandchildren. It also has an important place in the time they spend together. Grandfathers seem to be more responsible for meeting the grandchildren's entertainment and playing needs.
He asked 'Will you come home from work, will we both play?.' 'Sure,' grandpa said, 'I have a little work here, and I'll finish it right away.' [17] Football is the most important games that is played with the grandparents. The fact that almost all of the grandchildren are boys in the novels can be thought to be the reason of this situation.
What really surprised me was that my grandfather didn't use to like football at all, but he plays it now... later, we also started to play football with grandpa. [15]. 'As long as Aunt Hikmet plays at the back position, the ball is never headed into the goal. Because Aunt Hikmet is a huge rock! The ones that hit him breaks out ... ' I was really amazed at my grandma that day. She was neither tired, nor said 'puffed', nor said 'it hurts ...' [18].
Since the grandchildren and grandfathers love football so much, they not only play it but also go to the football matches.
'Hayri, I want to go to the Fenerbahçe-Altay match with the children. ... "... we went to the Ataturk Stadium. It was bursting at the seams. [15].
One of the games played by grandparents and grandchildren together is the game which we can be expressed as 'horse-riding' in which a stick / cane etc. is rode on as if it was a horse. This game, which is seen in only one novel, is a game that is preferred by the grandfather not by the children.
At that time, grandpa called for me: 'Bulent, come on, get on the back of my horse. Come, don't be afraid, it doesn't toss you. ' [15].
Grandparents support or do their favorite activities with the children. Another way of playing games and having fun is playing in the park / amusement park. Parks are popular with children as a playground. In the two novels in which the examples are found, the grandparents who take the children to the park are the grandfathers.
'Grandpa Cihat was taking us to the Amusement Park.' It's a small amusement park and it was for kids. It had swings and a chair-o-plane. [17].
In the Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları, the grandfather lives in the village and there is no park in the village. While waiting for the grandchildren to visit his village, he gets a nice private park built in a nice place of the village for his grandchildren and for the other children. In order to be able to have the park built, he follows the necessary procedures and also donates his own garden for the necessary land for it. Thus, he helps to meet the playing needs of not only his own grandchildren but also the other children, and thus, he wins their heart.
-Let's make an amusement park for the children of our village.
-What kind of an amusement park, Grandpa Can? -I saw it in Izmir. There were swings, slides, rope ladders, seesaws in it. [10].
It is seen that the grandparents provide a playground in which they installed a swing in their garden for their grandchildren in the Benim Dedem Bir Tane.
He tied a puller rope from pink nylon to the swing, too. Almila rode on the swing by bursting with happiness, and the grandmother started to joggle her. [17]. More precisely, Almila sat on the swing and the grandfather was swinging her slowly. [17].
Making Toys: the Ninemin Yemekleri Dedemin Oyuncakları states that it is fun to make toys with grandparents, and to have a toy by making efforts.
-We will do the toy together with Doğan Can now. Are you in, grandson? I shouted with joy: -I'm in, grandpaaa! ... My Grandpa's skills are countless. He also made me a rifle from a sunflower. ... We hardened the hard wood and put bullets in them. [11].
The grandfather gives information to his grandson about various tools and use of these tools and also contributes to the development of his motor skills by letting him use these tools.
You cannot straighten those nails with this adze, my apprentice. You should choose your tool right, he said. You should work in the right place. I left the adze, and got the smallest hammer. [11]. Even nailing without bending or twisting the nail requires the skill. Grandpa thought that my handcraft improved rapidly, my self-confidence was increasing ... [11].
Reading: Another activity that the grandchild and the grandparents do together in the Benim Dedem Bir Tane was 'reading' activity.
No, he was well-behaved as always. We read 'books' and looked at their pictures. [17].
Walking/Driving Around together; one of the activities that was done together was "going for a walk/ driving around" was found in three novels. The places visited are mostly places like "shopping centers, market, environment / neighborhood". In the Can Dede'nin Oyuncakları, the son and the grandchildren living in Izmir sightsee the grandfather in İzmir while he walks them around in the village in holidays.
'Come on,' he said, 'walk,' we go to ta-ta. ' to the grandmother; They said 'We are going around to the small grocery store, we will watch the birds and butterflies, we will come back soon ...' [17]. The grandmother said to the grandfather one night: 'I went to Almila's today, her mother allowed us and we went out to the market with her.' ... The grandmother said 'Yes, Almila loves the markets, you should see her'. [17].
Going to the pastry shop: In the Gemici Dedem, the pastry shops are seen as the places where the grandfather and grandchildren go to have a heart-to-heart talk and have a peace of mind.
'...Pfff ... You are such a grumpy today. Do I have to buy you a pot of hot chocolate to make you smile? Come on, kid ... There is a pastry shop over there. ' [16].

Drawing and painting:
The activities in which the grandfather and the grandchildren do drawing and painting are found in two novels. The painting of the ship-shaped house made for grandfather was done together in the Gemici Dedem.
Then we started to paint with the color pencils. [17]. 'Come on, help me now and let's paint the masts of our ship.' I was opening the paint box. [16].
Sometimes, it is seen that the parents may display wrong attitudes (not caring about their children's problems, not caring about their thoughts, etc.) and the grandparents fill this gap by acting as a friend with them. Not only the grandchildren see their grandparents as friends, but sometimes it's vice versa, i.e. that grandparents also see their grandchildren as friends.
My Grandpa started to see me as a grandchild, as a friend, and as an apprentice. [11].

Conclusions
In this study conducted to investigate the characteristics of grandparent-grandchildren relationship in children's novels, it is found that the grandparents are the parents of the fathers in the six of the nine children's novels (%66, 6). This is remarkable in the point that it shows that the patriarchal family structure of the society is reflected in the novels. It also shows that the agnates come first in large family relations. However, the studies show that young people have more positive thoughts about their maternal grandparents. "The average of the perceived positive characteristics of the maternal grandparents are higher than those of the paternal grandparents, while the average of the perceived negative characteristics of the paternal grandparents such as being old fashioned and stingy is higher than those of maternal grandparents" [6].
According to the results of this study, the grandparents whom the grandchildren have stronger relationships are the maternal grandmothers and the paternal grandfathers in the novels. In Hazer's study [6], it is also expressed that adolescents are more affectionate towards their grandmothers because they spend more time together with them and the grandparent take care of them. In this sense, the data obtained from the novels seem to be in line with the studies in this area. The grandfathers mostly take place in all of the novels except for the Yaşasın Anneanne Spor. This exhibits that it was predominantly the grandfathers who have strong relationships with the grandchildren, which is consistent with the studies on grandparents-grandchildren associations. "Most grandparents are able to establish warm relationships with their grandchildren, spend much time with them, be a model with good people, and give their grandchildren humanism, and love of nature" [19].
The fact that the grandparents' wife died, or the grandparents were alone in the six of the nine novels reveals that love of grandchildren is important, especially when lonely grandparents hold on to life, and decrease longing for their old days and wives. It is also remarkable that the main child hero / grandchildren are male in all the novels except for the Benim Dedem Bir Tane. Whether this is a sign of a reason related to the society and tradition or it refers to different causes is a point that needs to be investigated through a more comprehensive study. On the contrary to the structure in the novels, some studies in the literature show that girls are more positive about their interaction with their grandparents than boys. [20,6].
The fact that grandchildren and grandparents live in separate houses is mentioned in seven novels. In this sense, the family in these novels does not have the features of patriarchal and extended families, but nucleus families. "As young people who work in factories or other businesses in large cities get their economic independence, the authority of the parents on the children is getting weaker and weaker. As a result, young people have begun to choose their own spouses and to set up their homes separately as soon as they get married " [21]. In the literature, contrary to the situation in the novels, it is stated that the proportion of the elderly living together with their children in the family is often higher in the Turkish society [4].
In the four of the novels in which the grandparents live in separate houses, the grandparents live in the village, while they live in the city in the rest of the three novels. The grandparents and the grandchildren live together in the two novels. In the novels, it is stated that living in the same or separate houses with the grandparents does not have any negative effects on the grandchildren. It is also seen that it is based on positive emotions even when they live in the same house, in the same city but in separate houses, or in separate cities. This relationship contains emotions that express strong ties, such as love and pride, as mentioned in the novels and in the literature [5]. Even the grandparents who passed away are remembered with love in the novels. Even though they often live in separate houses or even in different cities, the establishment of good relationships points to the importance of the family and strong family structure in Turkish society. Hazer's work [6] on teenagers, however, reveals that there are fewer positive thoughts about the grandparents in adolescents who live in separate cities with their grandparents. According to this, there is more positive interaction between the grandparents and the grandchildren who meet more frequently in the same city. On the other hand, it is found that the adolescents living in separate houses with their grandparents even in the same city, have more positive opinions than those living in the same houses with their grandparents. In this sense, unlike the statements of the novels examined in this study, it is understood that living in the same or separate houses, or even living in separate cities in real life have an impact on the positive and negative development of the grandparents-grandchildren relationship. In addition, the lack of meeting frequency and excessive closeness or distance have more negative effects on their relationship.
It is stated that grandparents and grandchildren prefer the actions such as hugging, kissing, caressing / blending hair and smiling to show their love. This suggests that good relationships with grandparents have positive effects, especially in meeting children's spiritual needs (love, being loved, dependence, inclusion of a group etc.).
The sense of pride, on the other hand, appears to be a feeling that the grandchildren often feel towards grandparents. That the grandparents have values like being loved by the environment as a good and a helpful person, being self-sacrificing, skillful, determined and hardworking are the source of pride for the grandchildren.
Grandparents play an important role in meeting the needs of their grandchildren in their lives such as "care / nutrition, health and education" as well as" recognition of culture, social values, play / entertainment". In the study Arpaci and Bekar [20] investigating children's thoughts about their interaction with the grandparents; they stated that children like the situations such as going to the park, going to school and going shopping with their grandparents, getting money and gifts from grandparents, grandparents' telling fairytales or stories. However, the age of the grandparents is also influential in these cases. According to this study, children communicate better with young grandparents.
In the novels, grandmothers deal with "care-health" while grandfathers are mostly responsible for "transferring information and friendship (play / entertainment)". These data are also parallel with the studies in the area. In the study conducted by Arpacı and Tezel Şahin [4], it was also found that grandmothers have more positive opinions on caring the grandchildren. In the novel named Dedemin Kırmızı Kamyonu, it seems that the grandfather contributes to the education of the grandchildren physically and economically. It can be said that the areas of responsibility of the male and female grandparents differ markedly; female grandparents take more responsibility in meeting physical needs, while male grandparents take the responsibility in meeting spiritual needs.
Having fun together is important in the positive grandchildren-grandparent relationship. Therefore, sharing with the grandparents increases and also the grandparents can enter into the child's world and gain their love. According to the novels, the grandparents (especially the grandfathers) are the friends of the grandchildren, who they can joke, play and have heart-to-heart talk with. Grandparents can spend time with the grandchildren while the parents cannot due to the intensity of their work. Because they are often at home and retired, they can spend a lot of time with the children, and they can enjoy fun activities. For this reason, the gap left by the parents in the world of children can be filled by the grandparents.
According to the works, grandmothers are more active in the culture transfer and grandfathers are more active in the value transfer. It seems that the female grandparents bring together their grandchildren with the oral literature products (fairy tales, stories, riddles) which are based on narration more; while the grandfathers transfer culture by reading tales and singing folk songs. The studies conducted on this subject emphasize the importance of grandparents in culture and value transfer. [5,7]. These data indicate that grandparents are the bridges between the past and the future. Moreover, they are important for providing continuance of the society (culture / traditions and customs, values).
The establishment of the relationship of grandchildren with the literary works encourages children to read. Grandparents contribute to the development of children's basic language skills, as they are considered to develop 2060 Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships in Turkish Children's Novels speaking skills by listening and telling literary works. The grandparents can also be considered as a contributor to the grandchildren's mental development, as the knowledge is the tool of mind gymnastics. Also, when grandparents-grandchildren relationship is evaluated, it can be said that grandparents are influential in developing grandchildren's empathy and problem-solving skills, increasing their world knowledge, providing the definition of national culture, developing their motor skills, preparing them for life, and giving them value.