This sequel to Just Grace (2007) finds third-grader Grace Stewart still dealing with her hated classroom moniker, "Just Grace," as well as a host of other concerns. New neighbor Max seems nice enough, but Grace is worried that best friend Mimi would rather hang out with him. After a family trip to Chicago, Grace's fears seem realized, for Mimi, Max, and Sammy Stringer now seem inseparable. A class project with two other Graces refocuses Grace's attention and helps her realize that Grace F. is not really the "Big Meanie" she thought. Harper's strength is her understanding of third-grade angst, which she explores with a comic touch. Grace recounts her story using a combination of lists, short narratives, and cartoon sketches that will appeal to beginning chapter-book readers. Suggest this reassuring look at friendship and family to fans of Judy Moody and Clementine.

In this satisfying sequel to Just Grace, Grandma's sage advice about not being afraid of change comes in handy when Grace's best friend Mimi makes some new pals. Eventually Grace learns that she and Mimi can each make new friends while still remaining absolute best buddies. The first-person chapter book is amply illustrated with Grace's amusing cartoons.

When a new boy moves in next door to her best friend Mimi, third-grader Grace worries that she will lose her friend, but Mimi worries, too, because in the course of a school project Grace works with two of the other Graces in her class and discovers they're not so bad. Deceptively simple and reader-friendly, this uses gentle humor to explore issues important in elementary-school lives. Named by her teacher "Just Grace" when it turns out there are four girls with the same name in the class, she finds a positive way to let the adults know how she dislikes it. The author nicely contrasts the classroom teacher, a no-person, with the new intern, part of the yes-person group in Grace's eyes. Grace illustrates her story of changing classroom relationships and a three-day trip to visit her grandmother in Chicago with her own cartoons. This welcome sequel to Just Grace (April 2007) will be just as good an introduction to this engaging character. (Fiction. 7-10)

Gr 2-4-In this sequel to Just Grace (Houghton, 2007), the third-grade narrator struggles to maintain her identity around Grace W., Gracie, and Grace F.; to avoid classmate Sammy Stringer; and to spend as much time as she can with her best friend and next-door neighbor, Mimi. Changes are in store, however-a new boy has moved into the house on the other side of Mimi. Max can do walking handstands and says his favorite television show is the one that Grace and Mimi watch. Will Mimi like him better? An exciting visit to Chicago to help her grandmother move into an apartment for seniors is a distraction, but what will Grace find when she returns home? Grandma tells Grace that change is a tricky thing-what seems bad at first might turn out to be good, you just have to wait and see. Hard to do, but Grace finds that Grandma is right as the number of her friends expands to include Max, Sammy Stringer, and even her nemesis, Grace F. Fun illustrations on most pages display Grace's spirited style. Dealing with the problems of friendship and change in a lively way, this book is a good addition to the middle-grade shelves, joining newcomers Ivy and Bean and Clementine, and older favorites Judy Moody and Junie B. Jones.-Terrie Dorio, Santa Monica Public Library, CA Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.