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Age 8 - 12
195 pages, 32 chapters
* Winner of the 2015/2016 Red Cedar Award
* Finding Grace was a finalist for the 2015 Sheila Egoff Children’s Literature Prize.
* Nominated for Chocolate Lily Award
* Nominated for Rocky Mountain Awatd
The Story
"Dear Grace,
Mom didn't get out of bed all day. She pretended she did, but I can tell. She was in her nightie when I got home, and her hair was smushed on one side and she smelled sour, like sweaty running shoes. That means she will want to stay up all night, and she'll make me watch TV with her and I'll be tired again at school tomorrow. She just called me to bring her a cup of coffee. "You got a broken leg?" I yelled back. But I better go.
I'll write some more later.
Your best friend,
Hope"
Hope's letters to her imaginary friend Grace help her cope with the difficult times in her life: her mother's depression, money worries, struggles to make friends at school and her grandmother's death. On her eleventh birthday, Hope is shocked to discover a family secret that will change her life forever.
Becky Citra is known for creating appealing characters and using unique settings. Finding Grace takes place largely in Harrison Hot Springs, a place of healing that makes perfect sense for this story and as such is both unusual and charming. . . Finding Grace is an enjoyable and positive read for middle grade girls.
Highly Recommended ****
Citra successfully tells a very focused plot driven story . . .
Middle grade readers will find Hope’s letters and era-appropriate expressions quite endearing.
