A SIMPLE GIFT

Carrie, 10, has caught the acting bug, especially when she finds out that her mother’s award-winning children’s book is being staged in her mother’s hometown in North Carolina. This spunky New York City girl is in for many surprises as she heads for the mountains to work with the Broadway director, show-off Liza Barrett, and Storm Sellers, who’s repeating the fourth grade. The visit to her hometown also gives Carrie’s mother the opportunity to talk about her kindhearted brother, who died when she was little. When Carrie’s attempt to impress and outdo Liza results in the humiliation of Storm and the loss of the play’s star, Carrie must admit her fault and devise a plan to win him back. By the end of the production, she discovers that acting is a team effort and learns the true identities of the play’s characters. Through Patterson’s use of theater terms, newspaper articles, and children’s questionnaires, this progresses interestingly, the pieces coming together beautifully for a conclusion that will satisfy its young readers. (Fiction. 8-11)