Patricia Grace was born and educated in Wellington and grew up familiar with two worlds: her mother’s Pàkehà family and the Plimmerton Màori community of her father. She trained as a primary school teacher and taught in small country schools as well as in larger city schools in the Porirua area. She successfully combined her love of teaching and skills of writing with marriage and bringing up seven children. Her secure family background enabled her to see life from two perspectives, and her finely crafted short stories and novels, grounded in Màori experience, not only stand as landmarks of literary excellence but also offer insights into Màori values and beliefs which challenge and interest both Màori and non-Màori readers. Her work won many awards, including the fiction section of the New Zealand Book Awards in 1987, and the Scholarship in Letters in 1988. In 1989 she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Victoria University.

In 1995 Patricia Grace received a writing fellowship which enabled her to write full-time, and she continued to pursue this path. However, she did not allow her work or distinctions to dim her commitment to promoting writing among students. She communicated her ideas and experience to generations of teachers and young people, giving them confidence in finding their own voices and encouraging them to express their reality and imagination.