Misnamed by her teacher, seven-year-old Just Grace prides herself on being empathetic, but when she tries to help a neighbor feel better, her good intentions backfire.

Count on third-grader Grace to cook up a creative compromise just in time to save the day at the cupcake-themed school fair.

As Grace and her classmates study foods from other cultures, she has the opportunity to ponder such mysteries as whether Owen 1 is really bad or not, why she feels jealous when her father helps her best friend with her hot dog report, and how Augustine Dupre, her family's French boarder, can be so wise.