Customer Reviews

Gracies Girl

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Bess is preparing to go to middle school and she wants to be popular. In her effort to be "popular" she tries wearing outragous clothes and particpating in the school play. Bess's parents are very involved in volunteering at a homeless shelter. At first she resists assisting her parents, but eventually becomes more involved and committed to procurring a building for homeless women. Bess also befriends a homeless woman and learns to empathize with her plight. In the end Bess does get noticed; however, now popularity is not her primary goal. This book is realistic and does an excellent job of protraying adolescents.

Gracie's Girl was a fast reading book that should appeal to adolescents. It also shows that pre-teens and teens CAN make a difference and help others.

This book was an awesome book. The characters of this book are:
THE FAMILY
Bess Cunningham -A caring girl who wants to look different for middle school.
Mom - Bess' caring mother who works at a homeless shelter.
Dad - Bess' father who also works at the homeless shelter by cooking the food.
Willy Cunningham -Bess' annoying brother who help Bess to help a poor old lady.
THE FRIENDS
Ethan Reilly - Bess' friend who likes to play monopoly and who likes to help at the shelter.
Jannette - A girl whose mother is making her do a lot of activities.
Gracie Jarvis Battle - A lady who has to sleep on the sidewalk and becomes friends with Bess. (aka the poor old lady)
THE PLOT
Bess works at a shelter with her mom. She meets this old homeless lady who goes to the shelter every day and becomes friends with her. Pretty soon the old lady has a small house. What will happen to the lady? Will she die? Will she live? Most importantly what does Bess learn? Does she become more mature? Does she meet new friends? To find out more about what happens you'll have to read it. I would recommend this book to 10 year olds and up.

Olivia age 11

Sixth grade is about to begin, and Bess Cunningham is gearing up to be cool. With a bunch of wild new outfits and an important job in the school play, Bess is convinced she'll get a lot of attention--at least more than she gets from her overbooked parents. With a lawyer dad and a teacher mom, both of whom are passionate about volunteering for a soup kitchen, Bess sometimes feels like she would have to eat out of a Dumpster before they'd notice her. But when she meets an elderly woman named Gracie who actually does eat other people's discarded food, she begins to realize there are real human faces on the scruffy people her parents serve at the soup kitchen. Soon she and her best friend, Ethan, are deeply entrenched in Gracie's life, and in helping establish a shelter for homeless women. Bess is amazed to discover that even without her crazy wardrobe, she has managed to make new friends and make a difference.

Everyday before I take a shower, I think of all the people who don't even have a place to clean themselves up. I think of all the people who don't even know where the next meal is going to come from. I think of all the people who one minute had it all, and now they have nothing. Gracie's girl is pretty much about a sensitive subject: homelessness and what we need to do in the community to help these people out and it's not as easy as what people think. There is no quick fix to these solutions, and sometimes just getting a job isn't always the answer.
This book even though its for middle school kids should be read by everyone. Everyone that has ever thought anything about the homeless needs to read this book and perhaps they will see themselves and just how wrong their thinking is. Gracie and her friend Ethan are two middle school kids who are trying to help a homeless woman named Gracie and it isn't easy. Especially as it gets colder. And resources become scarce. The ending will make you cry and make you think about what you can do to help these people out.

Gracie's Girl is a fun and exciting book. It's about Bess entering middle school with her two best friends, Ethan and Janette. Her mom works at a shelter, and she meets a elderly homeless woman named Gracie Jarvis Battle. Bess has a lot of responsibility including the play and taking care of Gracie. Bess and Gracie becomes friends, and Bess is Gracie's Girl. Bess never wanted to go to the shelter and she had to be made to go. Now, she wants to go to the shelter because she enjoys spending and learning more about Gracie. Bess learns throughout the book that its more important to be a good person than to be popular. She grew up going each page down the book. She wasn't thinking about herself, but Gracie was always on her mind. If you enjoy and have a interest in books that have relationships and they learn from each other, then you'de have pleasure reading Gracie's Girl. I think that this book was excellent and has great meaning behind it!

One day in June Ethan and i were playing monopoly on the back porch of Bess house. Bess had to go with her mother....it is a really good book you should read it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am a bit disconcerted that this book would be recommended for students ages 9 -12 and grades 4 and up. This is not a book I would want to have available for my elementary child to pick up and read. The content of the book is most definitely middle school material. The language used is middle school, the social situations are middle school, the characters' personalities and their outlook on life are middle school. So,then, how in the world could any reader who has NOT been in the middle school relate to this book?
The plot was predictable and the ending was tied up a bit to easily. The character development was the strongest aspect of the book, but I also feel the change in the characters was forced and
all too easily evolved.
I would recommend this book to middle school students, but most definitely not to elementary age readers.

Bess Cunningham is a rising sixth grader who wants to be noticed in middle school and, she tries clothes and being a stage director, but it is her work with a homeless shelter that gets her noticed. The story deals with friend dynamics, family dynamics, school relationships, personal interests and how they all weave together to form an individual. Bess encounters many of the dilemmas common to middle schoolers from seeing a friend start dating to working with her brother. In the end, Bess must deal with the death of a homeless lady that she befriended.

The book is engaging from start to finish.

Gracie's Girl is a heart warming story about a girl named Bess and an elderly woman named Gracie. Bess is in the sixth grade and is very different from every one else. When she was in 5th grade she wanted to be popular, but that didn't happen. She works at the soup kitchen, and is a school stage manager. When she starts getting close to Gracie, Gracie starts calling Bess Gracie's girl, but then something bad happens. If you want to know what happens, well then you'll just have to read the story for yourself. I recommend this book to people the age of 7 and up. Don't forget to stop by the book store today!!

While reading this book,i started to cry. The prosperity of Bess is amazing. She is such a great,young girl who just wants to help one another. The way she endures the pain for Gracie,is incredible. At one point even though she thought she killed Grace,she was still doing the right thing. This book really did change my life,because it is so realistic. Plus,it can relate to me. Its taught me that helping others will really make a big effect on my life,and how i see things and people around me. And,in the end when she doesnt have Jake's attention,it really showed her up,strong side of security,for herself. Because,she didnt care what people said about her whenever she helped around in the homeless shelter. For doing the right thing,she still didnt get Jake's nice words,but really,in the end,she was the star. For all the hard,kind work she did for Gracie,it really did pay off in the end. I recommend it to anyone who hasnt read it yet.