Gracie's Girl - Softcover

Wittlinger, Ellen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0689849605 ISBN 13: 9780689849602

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2002

Synopsis

YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT -- OR WHO -- WILL TOUCH YOUR HEART.
Now that Bess Cunningham is in middle school, she's determined to get noticed. With her new glasses, her wild thrift-store clothes, and her job as stage manager for the school play, she's sure her days of being invisible are over.
Being forced to volunteer with her parents at the local soup kitchen doesn't exactly fit into Bess's popularity plans, especially since she finds the place so creepy. But when she meets Gracie Jarvis Battle, an elderly homeless woman, Bess can't help but feel compassion for her. Bess grows more involved with trying to feed and shelter the older woman, but as the weather turns colder and Gracie grows thinner, Bess begins to wonder -- will her help be enough?

About this title

Review

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.

For preteens on the never-ending search for identity, middle school can be a brutal place. Wanting to be noticed, wanting to be invisible, wanting to be grown up, wanting to be a kid...life isn't easy. Watching Bess's revelations unfurl will be tremendously helpful for kids on the cusp of adolescence. Not surprisingly, as she and her friends help others, they begin to feel better about themselves, and, guess what--their popularity grows as well. As shown in Hard Love, Ellen Wittlinger's ability to tackle tough issues from tricky perspectives is memorable and entertaining. (Ages 9 to 13) --Emilie Coulter

About the Author

Ellen Wittlinger is the critically acclaimed author of the teen novels Parrotfish, Blind Faith, Sandpiper, Heart on My Sleeve, Zigzag, and Hard Love (an American Library Association Michael L. Printz Honor Book and a Lambda Literary Award winner), and its sequel Love & Lies: Marisol’s Story. She has a bachelor’s degree from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, and an MFA from the University of Iowa. A former children’s librarian, she lives with her husband in Haydenville, Massachusetts.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0689849605
• ISBN 13: 9780689849602
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192