SAYING GRACE

Grace is, as her friend puts it, a “fretter.” She’s worried about the oncoming cold season, the last punishing winter fresh in her mind. As she and her family go about their routines, stocking up, piling firewood and, in particular, getting ready for their community’s communal harvest dinner, she observes the squirrels and gulls: “It looks as if they’re singing praises to God.” Impulsively, as the community sits down to table, she suggests that they give thanks, too—starting the tradition of saying a blessing before each meal. Ladwig sets the tale in a colonial-era New England town, suffusing his images with the yellows and golds of autumn and enveloping Grace in a gentle halo. Aesthetically informed by its message, it will appeal to its target audience. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-8)