Gilly—short for Tolkien's Galadriel—is not only a foster child but also, deliberately and blatantly, an enfant terrible…. In its similarity of theme and in its combination of poignancy and humor, [The Great Gilly Hopkins] may be compared with Betsy Byars's The Pinballs…. Yet despite the racy dialogue and the memorably eccentric characters, the author's second novel with a contemporary setting does not measure up to Bridge to Terabithia in subtlety, structural beauty, and emotional power. (p. 279)

Ethel L. Heins, in The Horn Book Magazine (copyright © 1978 by the Horn Book, Inc., Boston), June, 1978.