Lily's
Crossing
By:
Patricia Reilly Giff
-
A 1998
Newbery Honor Book
-
An ALA
Notable Children's Book
-
A Boston
Globe-Horn Book Honor Book
-
Website
Information Compiled By: Sabrina Sins, Jacqueline N. Reedy, Amy Jordan,
Lauren Jones, Molly Hauck, Julie Smith
-
-
Book
Talk
-
Each summer Lily and her father go to their summer house in Rockaway, New
York. In the summer of 1944, Lily's father is drafted into the military.
Lily's best friend, Margaret moves with her family, so Lily is left with
her grandmother. Slowly Lily builds a friendship with Albert, a refuge
from Hungary, who comes to live in Rockaway. Albert has lost most
of his family to the war, so the friendship created between him and Lily
is very special. They share many secrets with each other and more
then anything Lily hopes her father returns home safely and Albert wishes
that he will find his sister. Through their friendship they see life
in a different way, but Lily needs to stop lying before she costs Albert
his life.
-
-
Author
Study
-
Patricia Reilly Giff
is a children's literature author who has written about 60 books.
She was born on April 26, in Brooklyn, New York. As a child, she
loved reading and spent most of her time with books. Giff attended
Marymount College where she earned a B.A. She also attended St. Johns
University where she earned an M.A., and then went on to attend Hoftsra
University where she received a Professional Diploma in Reading.
Throughout her life, Patricia Reilly Giff has been surrounded by books.
She was a reading teacher for twenty years, an educational consultant for
Dell Yearling and Young Yearling books, an advisor and instructor to inspiring
writers, and an author of many children's books. Giff begins each
day by writing, which is like second nature to her. She admits to
wanting to be a writer ever since she began reading. She explains
that she wanted "the children to bubble up with laughter, or to cry" when
reading her books. She writes children's books in the hopes that
students will form a better love of reading. Giff's books are based
mostly on her own personal experiences or experiences of people she knows.
One of Giff's latest books Lily's Crossing, has been named a Newberry Honor
Book, a Notable Book for Children, and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor
Book. She now lives in Weston,
Connecticut where
she and her husband have three children and four
grandchildren.
In 1990, Giff and her husband opened a children's bookstore called "The
Dinosaur's Paw," after one of her novels. She currently spends her
free time visiting schools and libraries around the country, speaking to
young children about her writing and her books.
-
Book
List
Books
By Patricia Reilly Giff:
The Girl Who
Knew it All (Yearling Books - October 1999)
Write Up a Storm
With the Polk Street School (Yearling Books - November 1993
All About Stacy
(Young Yearling - November 1998)
B-E-S-T Friends
(Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Beast adn the
Halloween Horror (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
The Beast in
Ms. Rooney's Room (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
The Candy Corn
Contest (Yearling Books - November 1984)
The Case of the
Cool-Itch Kid (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
The Clue at the
Zoo (Econo-Clad - October 1999)
Count Your Money
with the Polk Street School (Econo-Clad Books-October 1999)
Dance with Rosie
(Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Decmeber Secrets
(Yearling Books - December 1984)
Emily Arrow Promise
to Do Better This Year (Yearling Books-November 1990)
Fancy Feet
(Young Yearling - October 1988)
Fish Face
(Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Fourth Grade
Celebrity (Econo-Clad Books -October 1999)
Garbage Juice
for Breakfast (Young Yearling - August 1989)
A Glass Slipper
for Rosie (Puffin - November 1998)
Good Luck, Ronald
Morgan (Viking Childrens Book - September 1996)
Green Thumbs
Everyone (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Happy Birthday,
Anna, Sorpresa! (Bantam Books - February 1996)
Happy Bithday,
Ronald Morgan (Viking - June 1988)
In the Dinosaur's
Paw (Econo-Clad - October 1999)
Laura Ingalls
Wilder: Growing Up in the Little House (Econo-Clad Books - October
1999)
Lazy Lions, Luck
Lambs (Econo-Clad - October 1999)
Left Handed Shortstop
(Yearling
Books - November 1989)
Look Out, Washington,
D.C.! (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Love from the
Fifth-Grade Celebrity (Yearling Books - August 1987)
Mary Moon is
Missing (Viking Childrens - October 1998)
Matthew Jackson
Meets the Wall (Yearling Books - December 1991)
Mother Teresa:
Sister to the Poor (Viking Press - May 1987)
The Mystery of
the Blue Ring (Econo-Clad Books October 1999)
Next Year I Will
be Special (Bantam Doubleday Bell Publisher - May 1996)
Not-So-Perfect
Rosie (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Oh Boy, Boston
(Bantam Books - October 1997)
Pickle Puss (Bantam
Books - October 1999)
Purple Climbling
Day (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Rat Teeth (Yearling
Books - January 1990)
Say 'Cheese'
(Econo-Clad Books - Octobe 1999)
Shark in School
(Yearling Books - November 1995)
Snaggle Doodles
(Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Stacy Says Good-Bye
(Young Yearling - February 1989)
Sunny-Side Up
(Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
Today was a Terrible
Day (Viking Press - April 1984)
The Trial of
the Screaming Teenager (Young Yearling - July 1990)
The Valentine
Star (Econo-Clad Books - Octobe 1999)
Wake Up, It's
Mother's Day! (Econo-Clad Books - October 1999)
The Winter Worm
Business (Yearling Books - January 1983)
Related
Books:
High
Flight: A Story of World War II author: Linda Granfield and Michael
Martchenko illustrator: Linda Granfield. Tundra Books - November 1999.
Strange
but True Stories of World War II author: George Sullivan Walker &
Company - March 1991.
America
in World War II: 1941 author: Edward F. Dolan. Millbrook Press - August
1994.
A
Nightmare in History: The Holocaust, 1933-1945
author: Miriam Chaikin Clarion Books - April 1992
To
Touch the Stars: A Story of World War II author: Karen Zeinert Jamestown
Publishers - May 2000
Too
Young to Fight: Memories from our Youth Druing World War II author:
Pricilla Galloway Stoddart Kids - April 2000
The
Uss Arizona author: R. Conrad Stein Children's Press - October 1992
Victims
of War author: Robin Cross Thomas Learning - November 1993
Aftermath
of War
author: Robin Cross
Thomas Learning - May 1994
The
Battle of Midway
author: Earle Rice
Lucent Books - January 1996
Bomber
of World War II
author: Nancy Robinson Masters
Children's Press - January 1996
Cities
at War
author: Robin Cross
Thomas Learning - September 1994
Fighter
Plans of World War II
author: B. Marvis
Chelsea House Publishing - May 1997
The
Invasion of Normady
author: David Pietrsza
Lucent Books - November 1995
Pearl
Harbor
author: Sue L. Hamilton
Abdo Publishing Company - Decmeber 1991
Classroom
Activities
Language
Arts:
Have
the students compare and contrast the difference between Margaret and Lily's
friendship and Albert and Lily's friendship.
Social
Studies:
The
students can draw a map and include a key of Rockaway, New York.
Math:
The
students can calculate how far Lily and Albert are in Rockaway from Ruth
and Lily's father in France.
Science:
Stars
are an important part of Lily's life because they remind her of her mother.
Have the students research the three main stars she talks about in the
book: Big Dipper, Orion's Belt, and Cassiopeia
Drama:
Have
the children act out one of the crazy events that happens in the story.
ex. when she dives in for the kitten, saves Albert, or chases the mailman
Art:
Have
the children make the wooden boats that Lily rowed in.
Web
activity
1. Go to www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/guts/index.html
2. Click on Search.
3. Type in World
War Two.
4. Go
to the number 28 match-The American Experience/Presidents/Teach/Truman/For
the Classroom.
5. Scroll down
and click on Days of Decision-Vote Now.
6. Click on Click
here to vote.
7. Vote on each
issue- Housing, The Marshall Plan, and Aid to Greece and Turkey.
Click on Vote the Issues.
8. As a class,
discuss the issues that were voted on.
Related
Websites
return to top
