My favorite thing about this book was Grace's enthusiasm for everything. From the witch's meanness to her friends kindness, Grace presented the world with an open heart and an enthusiasm for all of it. I loved that the story didn't revolve around Grace trying to make the witch good or believing she could be better. Grace liked that the witch was mean and evil because that's how witches are supposed to be. And even though she was kind and sweet herself she also wanted to hone her magic and become a witch. This was such a fun read.

This book was wonderfully sweet! It made me think of Anne of Green Gables with a Studio Ghibli twist.
Beautifully done!

Emiliy Fawcett, WHY. This is my second middle grade read of hers, and she breaks my heart each time. I AM NOT OKAY. *curls up in a ball and weeps inconsolably* Ehem. This story was so magical and whimsical and felt like a fairytale. If you've read Emily Wilde, you'll love this. It's weird and magical and quirky. The witch is actually a real Hansel and Gretel style witch, which gave me Feelings and I was not expecting. The moral quandary of this book is quite a lot, and again, I have Feelings. but gosh, this book. This BOOK. I love the found family elements of it. The way Grace finds companionship and love in those around her, some seeing her as she truly is, others not quite seeing her, but still coming to love and care for her anyway. It just tugged at all the heart strings and shattered my soul into a hundred little pieces.
So if you love magic and found family and heart ache, this is the story for you.

I adore Heather Fawcett's books. I love the Emily Wilde series and I really enjoyed her young adult duology as well. I've also really loved her middle grade books, so when I saw she had an Anne of Green Gables retelling with magic, I knew I had to pick it up. This is such a fun and sweet book. It has the perfect witchy vibes that you would want combined with the found family themes that are so prevalent in Anne of Green Gables. And absolute delight.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for granting me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story was decently charming, though not my favorite Heather Fawcett book. I enjoyed the interactions between Grace and the witch. It's a cozy little tale.

The description of Anne of Green Gables meets witchiness is a perfect comparison. Grace is an orphan who is also a witch. She finds a witch to live with in the woods. She makes a deal with the witch if she learns the grimoire. There are 100 1/2 spells to learn. Grace makes a best friend Serena and Serena helps Grace learn the spells. Grace is quite the talker and loves poetry.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the witchiness of the book. This book is a sweet book. The Anne series was one of my favorites growing up. Also, I loved the PBS version. Love this cover. This retelling is a lot of fun.

I wish it had a more developed plot, but it was just ok. I didn't connect with the characters, but I thought it was a decent story.

I thought that the writing for this novel was okay and the representation wasn't all there for me. It was a struggle for me to get through this book as the plot wasn't as intriguing to me.

I was really expecting more from the story...I guess richer settings, characters, everything. I had a completely different idea of how things would play out that what actually happened.

While I enjoyed this story very much, hearing it billed as an Anne of Green Gables reimagining made for a challenging beginning for me. It wasn’t until I suspended all knowledge of its connection to the beloved classic, that I was able to truly enjoy this fantastical tale. Perhaps the fantasy obscured the connection for me.

That said, I found The Grace of Wild Things to be a delightful tale full of vivid imagery and enchanting characters. Grace’s imagination and determination were admirable and her crow Windweaver, along with his poetry, were wonderful elements that added to the magical experience. Beautifully told with themes of friendship, found family, and forgiveness, this witchy story is a moody fairytale perfect for fall.

This story was full of interesting spells and the story line was fun. I enjoyed the young witch's spunk and tenacity. I feel this would appeal to middle grade kids, especially girls who love nature and are interested in the mysteries of the natural world.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me access to the free advanced digital copy of this book.

This is a great alternative for kids struggling with the original Anne of Green Gables text. Would have liked to have seen some of the more childish impacts of Anne changed, but this is a kid's book so I can't be too choosy.

Perfect cozy fantasy! I found this book to be really engaging and I loved the premise. I'm a sucker for Anne of Green Gables so this story was right up my alley. I am looking forward to reading other books by the author.

As a huge fan of Anne of Green Gables, I was excited to read The Grace of Wild Things. It’s billed as a magically inspired version of Anne of Green Gables for middle grade readers, and definitely lived up to that expectation. While there were many similarities to the beloved classic, there were enough differences to make it uniquely it’s own. One thing I really appreciated was that the author really captured Anne Shirley’s whimsical, enchanting personality in Grace.

As an unwanted orphan whose only talent is magic, Grace runs away from the orphanage to visit the legendary wicked witch in the forest. The witch is every bit as wicked as you would imagine, easily comparable to Hansel and Gretel’s witch. After nearly getting eaten by the witch, Grace strikes a bargain with her to become her apprentice if she can learn all 100 1/2 spells in the witch’s grimoire before the cherry tree blooms.

As Grace works to learn the spells, her sunny disposition begins to affect the cold hearted witch. Little by little, the witch begins to grudgingly care for Grace, allowing her to go to school and providing her with the home she’s always dreamed of. However, learning all the spells is more difficult than Grace thought. With a little help from newfound friends and her familiar crow named Windweaver, Grace might just be able to meet the witch’s bargain.

While I absolutely adored all the nods and familiar scenes from Anne and the exceptional world building, I wasn’t sure how I felt about certain things. Reading Anne as an adult, I’ve come to really appreciate Marilla. While the witch in many ways embodies that gruff, tough yet lovable persona, it’s hard to reconcile the fact that she nearly ate Grace and did lots of other really wicked things. I ultimately liked the way things turned out between Grace and the witch, but their relationship is more complicated than Anne’s and Marilla’s.

At almost 370 pages, it’s quite a hefty read for a middle grader. There were some parts that lagged a bit and it took me awhile to get into the story. However, once Grace goes to school and meets new friends, it became really enjoyable for me. I enjoyed identifying characters in the story who matched those in Anne of Green Gables. There are quite a few familiar scenes like the slate scene, elderberry wine, nursing a sick child, and the antagonism with Marilla’s friend Rachel. The villain introduced in the last portion of the story kind of came out of nowhere, but it made for an interesting twist. I also liked the positive messages of friendship and loyalty.

Parents should be aware that there might be some potentially scary things for young readers. If nightmares, witches eating children, ghosts, and scary forests are upsetting, you may want to read it first before giving it to your child. There are also witchcraft elements like spells, and making potions. While there are a lot of similarities to Anne of Green Gables, you don’t necessarily have to be familiar with that story to enjoy this book. Fans of magical fantasy and Anne of Green Gables might enjoy this. I received an advanced complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own and voluntarily given. 3 1/2 stars

THE GRACE OF WILD THINGS – by Heather Fawcett

‘[T]he aroma drifting through the dark trees was from bread gone chocolaty brown on the outside and soft as a pillow within, full of gooey raisins that burst on your tongue. Most children would have turned around when they smelled something like that, for it meant the witch was near.’

THE GRACE OF WILD THINGS centers around Grace Greene, an orphan who flees Rose & Ivy Home for Unwarded Children –and in Gretel-esque fashion—finds herself at the mercy of an evil witch who lives in the woods.

To save herself from a culinary demise, Grace makes a deal with the witch—If Grace learns all 100 1/2 spells in the witch’s grimoire, the witch must make Grace her apprentice, but if she fails. . .

The witch takes her magic!

‘“Hope” is the thing with feathers - That perches in the soul - And sings the tune without the words - And never stops - at all - —Emily Dickinson, “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers”’

I Love the characters and the cover, and although the darkness of the storyline filled my horror heart with glee, it was Grace's heavy heart filled with hope and loneliness that broke it.

Recommend!

Reading Ages - 8-12 years

Grace is an orphan who has been rejected by every home that tried to take her in. She has such a strange aura that no one can stand. so she seeks out a well known witch to take her in and teach her magic. This retelling of Anne of Green Gables delightfully captures the nature of the main character while giving it a refreshing new setting and genre.

The Grace of Wild Things is a beautifully written retelling of Anne of Green Gables by Heather Fawcett. Released 14th Feb 2023 by HarperCollins on their Balzer + Bray imprint, it's 368 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

Although marketed to a middle grade audience, this is truly an all-ages appropriate re-imagining of Anne of Green Gables with a young witch who runs away from her dreary existence at an orphanage and seeks out a dangerously curmudgeonly older witch to guide and teach her. After getting off to a rocky start, they come to an agreement and soon see their odd new found family facing deadly challenges from outside.

The author is both prolific and adept at characterization, setting, world building, and narrative and this is an engaging and entertaining story. Young Grace is an appealingly plucky heroine and readers will be cheering her along in her quest. The promotional materials suggest this book for readers in the middle school audience (8-12 years) and while there's no directly graphic violence, there are a number of scary situations. Given the nature of the (ridiculous) challenges and bannings in the USA currently, acquisitions staff might want to read the book before adding it to collections.

Four and a half stars. Well worth picking up, and not just for readers in the "target" audience. It's an enjoyable and worthy retelling of a classic story.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Utterly magical. Very far from a 1:1 adaptation, but that made it even better to see the echoes of the original. I think Anne would approve.

A fantastic piece of middle grade fantasy. Grace is an orphan, who also happens to be a witch. Because of her witchy gift and her intelligent and outgoing nature, she has always been passed up by prospective adopters. When she hears about the wicked witch who lives in the woods (a la Hansel and Gretel), she runs away from the orphanage to hopefully find a home there. Their introduction isn't a great one, as the witch tries to eat Grace... But Grace is determined to make this her home, so she strikes a deal with the witch: if she can successfully complete all 100 and a half spells from the witch's grimoire within a certain time frame, she will get to stay and become her apprentice. If she fails, however, the witch will take her magic and send her back to the orphanage. With the help of her crow familiar, a fairy prince, and the local children, she may just succeed.

I only vaguely know the story of Anne of Green Gables, but I thoroughly enjoyed this magical retelling. Grace is precocious, intelligent, and kind, a lovely protagonist. She finds true friendships throughout the story. The magical elements were well done, and it was fun to follow along with Grace as she made her own interpretations as to what the strange spell ingredients truly were. The bird-centric poems that start off each chapter are a great addition. A highly enjoyable story about friendships and found family.