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Grace Stewart has the bad luck of having three other Graces in her third-grade class, so she is given the label of “Just Grace,” which she despises. Not a great way to start out the school year, but at least she is with her best friend, Mimi, and they don’t have to deal with the awful Sammy Stringer too much.
Grace’s life is also filled with adventures involving her downstairs tenant, Augustine Dupre (from France!), and her odd next-door neighbor, who also happens to be a teacher at her school, Mrs. Luther. When Mrs. Luther breaks her leg and must wear a “scary” orange cast, Mrs. Luther’s cat, Crinkles, becomes scared of her. Grace decides that she needs to brighten up Mrs. Luther’s life, so she embarks on a project that has surprising results.
Just Grace is a cute, fun book that kids will love to read themselves or have read to them. It is divided into small sections rather than chapters, so it is easy to pick up and put down again, no matter how much time one has to read. I read it aloud to my two children (one who happens to be a seven-year-old named Grace), and they both enjoyed it immensely. Each evening they wanted to find out what antics Grace would be
up to.
The writing style is conversational and incredibly kid-friendly, run-on sentences and all. Its great humor builds up rather than tears down, and it's not dumbed down just to be
at a child’s level. The illustrations are superb and truly add an extra dimension to the story.
The sequel, Still Just Grace, will be released soon. This is a series both boys and girls will enjoy, and parents will get a kick out of it as well. Highly recommended for young readers.
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Just Grace