Reviews and Endorsements – With Grace

With Grace. Publisher: Little Bell Caribbean. Genre: Children’s fiction (picture book). Year of Release: 2016. ISBN-1934370622/ISBN-13: 9781934370629 Illustrated by: Cherise Harris. Formats: hardcover, special edition – paperback – with the seal marking it as an official selection for the 2017 United States Virgin Islands Governor’s Summer Read Challenge

Synopsis: With Grace is a fairytale filled with magic, enchantment, and lots of heart. Grace leads a carefree life in Grace’s Peak, and looks down upon the rest of the villagers who are not as fortunate as she, but when a young girl comes in search of assistance, both lives are forever changed as truths about love, family and community are unearthed.  First Page

REVIEWS & ENDORSEMENTS

#Endorsements

“With Grace combines feelings of love, hate, greed, and generosity to weave a powerful narrative that is magical in spirit and human in character.” – judges of the Desi Writers Lounge story contest in which With Grace was singled out for commendation

“Beautiful, well thought, and meaningful…Hillhouse blends traditional elements of the fairytale with her own Caribbean sensitivity to create an unforgettable story about human frailty and the power of love.” – Mario Picayo, children’s book author, A Caribbean Journey from A to Y (Read and Discover What Happened to Z)

#Reviews

“With Grace explores a Caribbean space richly woven with magic, mystery, and fantasy – an engaging fable not only for young readers but any reader poised for a new reading experience that twists and turns on a suggestion of allegory.” – Alscess Lewis Brown – editor, the Caribbean Writer

#Reader Reviews (and shout outs)

(Instagram)
“My kids ask me to read this book over and over!! A fave in our house!!”

(Amazon)
“I adore this Caribbean fairytale! It’s a wonderful story about love, greed and selflessness with unexpected twists, full of Caribbean culture and gorgeous illustrations. I wish a book like this was around when I was growing up.”

“I love this book for so many reasons. It’s one of those books that make you wish you had oodles of money so you can buy a copy for every child in your life and every adult book lover you know. I absolutely love the illustration; I love the depth of the story’s themes, especially the message about love; and I love the way each page exudes Caribbean cultural pride. With Grace is like any number of great Disney animated films in that it appeals to adults every bit as much as it does children, if not more so. In fact, I went back and bought a second copy for an adult friend after gifting the first purchase to my six-year-old niece. Di book deep. Smartly written and deep.”

“I love this book. A great exploration of how we approach our lives. It deals with being selfish and the results of that. Also, how moving beyond selfishness can be rewarding in so many ways.”

(blogs)
“We love your book!” – Cherish 365

(Facebook)
“(With Grace) captured the hearts of not just the students but the teachers who couldn’t help but get caught up in the story of Grace, Grace-Lynn, the mango tree and its little faerie who could do what I could not: bubble and whine. If you could only see their faces lighting up each time we had to sing: Come now… Gimme likkle, gimme likkle. That song became their jam!” – Glen Toussaint of Best of Books in a public posting after a visit to the Freetown Primary School, 2017

“An homage to our oral tradition – rhythmic, soulful and like all good stories, simply told and yet, has a powerful core – Grace – a name, an action and a feeling. Makes one feel warm and want to read more stories that reflect us and allow children to discover our world through the beautiful illustrations by Cherise Harris.”

“One of the best things after the experience of Joanne’s #WithGrace is seeing my nephew singing and dancing to the rhythms of his version of ‘gi me likkle’.”

“This book is for children and the adults in their life – beautifully told and illustrated.”

“In ‘WITH GRACE‘ Joanne has shared a magical story set in familiar Caribbean places. I enjoyed reading it to myself and I can’t wait to read it to some of the little people in my life.”

“Highly recommend this book especially for Caribbean children. Flower fairies have always been a favourite of mine.”

“Well done Joanne – it’s a lovely children’s book – a real keeper.”

“A beautiful story”

“Loved it”

“We continue to underestimate the power of the printed word … the power of image …. We neglect to realise that validation and realisation are steeped in the subliminal of what we allow our children to read and watch … I am looking forward to this … and I continue to celebrate books and images that look like me and my own.”

(Goodreads)

“I enjoyed the artwork. This is a morality tale about the importance of humility and generosity.”

“I enjoyed the artwork.”

“It’s a delightful read”

“Written in Hillhouse’s strong poetic voice, With Grace spins a magic-laden story of the universal battle between good and evil. But it is far from ordinary. An involved tale, With Grace takes the reader on a series of twists and turns as Hillhouse explores the limits of human capacity for tolerance and meanness. Hillhouse skilfully evokes her Caribbean setting and the illustrations, beautifully painted by Barbadian illustrator Cherise Harris, complete the illusion. Readers, children and adults alike, will be swept away into this fairy-tale and hold their breaths in anticipation of where the story will take them next.” – author/publisher Carol Mitchell

With Grace was one of the January books read over at Baby Making Machine in their 2017 365 challenge – they gave it five stars over on goodreads

(personal notes)
“I love the book; bought four copies.”

“…an excellent book. Loved everything… from the narrative to the illustrations.”

“I enjoyed the feeling and the vibe of the book, there’s a familiarity to it. Echoes of stories I’ve read in my youth, Caribbean stories. The opening and the build-up was good; it hooked me. Then the ‘turn’ …I’m glad it’s not exactly a happily ever after. That would be too cliché. And I loved the Caribbean fairy tale with the lil bubble n wine fairy.”

“Her excitement was palpable…(she) was reading out loud – dramatically!” – from someone who had gifted the book to a child

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Praise for the artist:

(social media)
“The illustrations are simply amazing!”
“SUCH a charming cover!!!”
“Love this…will definitely buy this book!”
“Gorgeous!”
“Beautiful.”
“This looks fantastic.”
“Such a gorgeous cover!”
“What a joyful, inviting cover!”
“What a beautiful cover.”
“Gorgeous cover!”
“Love the cover – inside has got to be just as good”
“Love the cover too!”
“Great cover.”
“Wow, wow, wow! Did I say Wow?!”
“What a cover!”
“The cover is lively and inviting.”
“Love the cover.”

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Related links:
With Grace launch release
With Grace December 2016 launch
Why With Grace
With Grace: the Interview
With Grace selected for the 2017 US VI Governor’s Summer Read Challenge
With Grace showcased during Antigua’s 2017 Carnival (post 1, post 2)
Picturebook Love: 5 Caribbean Children’s Authors on Helping Kids Choose Love Through Stories

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