A powerful work of historical fiction that vividly captures the experience of being a child laborer at the turn of the century.
1910. Pownal, Vermont. Grace and her friend Arthur are good students in the mill school but must leave the classroom to work as "doffers" in the mill. Grace's mother is a fast worker and Grace desperately wants to help her. But she's left handed and doffing is a right-handed job. Grace's every mistake costs her mother and the family. Grace only feels capable when she and Arthur receive lessons from Miss Lesley, the mill school teacher. Together they write a secret letter to the Child Labor Board about underage children working in Pownal. A few weeks later a photographer appears—it is the famous reformer Lewis Hines. Grace's brief acquaintance with Hines and the photos he takes of her are a gift that changes her sense of herself and her family's future.
"History and fiction are woven seamlessly together in this beautifully written novel."—School Library Journal, starred review ALA Notable Children’s Book
Lili Gamache creates a remarkably resourceful and sympathetic character in Grace Forcier, a 12-year-old girl who leaves school to work at the mill in a Vermont town in 1910. COUNTING ON GRACE is an excellent historical novel inspired by the real-life photograph of a mill child taken by child labor activist Lewis Hines. Grace is a wide-eyed girl who wants so much to help her family earn more money, to learn to read with her teacher on Sundays, and ultimately to become a teacher; and that enthusiasm and frustration are faithfully translated. Another highlight is Gamache's interpretation of Grace's mother as a proud French-Canadian mill worker and a force to be reckoned with. The music seems slightly overused but doesn't mar a stunning production. A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine
- School Library Journal, Starred...
"History and fiction are woven seamlessly together in this beautifully written novel. Readers won't soon forget Grace."
- Kirkus Reviews...
"Vividly portrays mill life and four characters who resist its deadening effects. . . . Solid research and lively writing."
- Booklist...
"The child-labor story is gripping."
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