Encore, Grace! [Hardcover]

Mary Hoffman (Author), June Allan (Illustrator), Caroline Binch (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

There's no one quite like Grace, the irrepressible girl whose imagination always works overtime. The widely popular heroine of Amazing Grace (an ALA Notable and Reading Rainbow selection) now makes her second appearance in an illustrated chapter book.

School's started again, and there's a new girl in her class who makes Grace feel jealous. When the teacher assigns them to work together on the upcoming school play, Grace isn't sure what to expect. Meanwhile she is still worried that her mother might remarry, but she also learns how it feels to lose someone forever. And it looks as if a friend might have to move away, while a new friend is about to be gained. As always, Grace bravely meets these changes head-on, while also managing to find her way onstage for another exciting dramatic performance!

Illustrated by June Allan.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-5-This chapter book, which features a character first introduced in the picture book Amazing Grace (1991), has an old-fashioned tone. Grace and her friends play imaginatively, adults are mostly understanding, and even word choices seem dated. However, Grace is faced with challenges that are universal and timeless. She must deal with the death of an elderly neighbor, saying good-bye to a friend who moves away, and feelings of jealousy when a bright new girl at school tries to steal the show. She must also face the consequences after being caught skipping school, and worries that her mother may remarry. As in Starring Grace (2000, both Dial), the lively protagonist gets to act in a play, this time an updated version of Sleeping Beauty. Settings are spare, feelings are sometimes described more than shown, and Grace's friends and loving African-American family do not come to life. Allan's occasional black-and-white sketches do not radiate much emotion or action. Encore, Grace! is a pleasant read but only a first purchase where the earlier books are popular.
Tina Zubak, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 2-5. The thrill of putting on a show is once again at the center of a story about Grace, and, as in the picture book Amazing Grace (1991) and the chapter book Starring Grace (2000), the drama is as much about family, friends, and jealous rivals as it is about what happens on stage. Although Grace at first envies Crishell, the smart new girl in class, the girls get close when they write the class play, a fractured fairy tale that changes Sleeping Beauty to Waking Beauty, with a protagonist who doesn't just passively wait to be rescued. In a nice parallel, Grace and her friends decide to stand up to the grown-ups in their lives, and they draw up a children's rights charter asking their parents to talk to them about changes that affect them. The type is spacious for new readers and for reading aloud, and the occasional black-and-white illustrations include a close-up of Grace as the Wicked Fairy on stage as well as warm scenes of the neighborhood. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Dial (December 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803729510
• ISBN-13: 978-0803729513
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,196,279 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars SHould be called Stop Already, Grace!, February 20, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Encore, Grace! (Hardcover)

This book stinks like a garbage dump. I hated it more than anyone could comprehend. Ms. Hoffman should've just stopped at amazing grace, which shoul've been called Terrible Grace. It sucked!