Chapter Book #2--Lily's Crossing

Title:  Lily's Crossing

Author:  Patricia Reilly Giff
Illustrator:  Cover:  Kamil Vojnar

Grade Level Equivalent:  5.8

Lexile Measure:  720L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme:  Friendship can tackle anything.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Lily, Albert, Gram, Poppy, Margaret

Awards:  Newbery Medal (Nominated, 1998)

Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards (Nominated, 1997)
Mark Twain Award (Nominated, 2000)
Sunshine State Young Reader's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Wyoming Indian Paintbrush Book Award (Nominated, 2002)
Iowa Children's Choice Award (Nominated, 2001)
Golden Sower Award (Nominated, 2000)
SCASL Book Award (South Carolina) (Nominated, 2000)
Massachusetts Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Georgia Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 1998)
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award (Nominated, 1999)
Great Lakes' Great Books Award (Nominated, 2000)
Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Sequoyah Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
William Allen White Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Great Stone Face Children's Book Award (Nominated, 1999)
Great Stone Face Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Sasquatch Reading Award (Nominated, 2000)
Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (Nominated, 2000)
Nene Award (Nominated, 2002)
Date of Publication:  1997
Publisher:  Random House, Inc
ISBN:  0385321422

Lily’s Crossing follows a precocious young girl and the trials and tribulations of living on Rockaway Beach the summer of 1944—during World War II.  Upon arrival for the summer, Lily finds out her best friend, who lives next door, is moving to Detroit, Michigan where her father has gotten a job in a factory building B-24s, while her brother is deployed to Europe fighting in the war.  If that news wasn’t bad enough, Lily soon finds out that her father will be leaving to join the war efforts, as well.  Just as it seems as if this summer will be the worst of her life, the neighbors bring home their nephew, Albert, who came from Hungary to escape Hitler and the Nazis.  Albert’s story is a sad one.  His mother and father printed an anti-Hitler newspaper and got caught by the Nazis.  With the help of his grandmother, he and his sister, Ruth, fled the country with a family friend.  But when they got to the ship that was to carry them to safety, Ruth came down with a very bad case of the measles and was taken to the hospital by a nun.  Albert made it to safety, came to live with his aunt and uncle, and met Lily, who would become his best friend.  The story continues on, following Lily and Albert through the events of the war and through their attempt at reaching their goal of sailing out into the Atlantic, towards a navy ship, so that they can reach Europe and find Lily’s dad and Albert’s sister; an attempt that nearly takes the life of Albert.  Through it all, two young, lost souls find in each other the best friend they had been missing their whole lives.

I really loved this book.  It was so dramatic, but in a very realistic way.  At times it felt as if it were 1944 and the events of the war were happening right here and right now.  It really pulls you in and keeps you captivated on what is going on.  You feel a real sense of empathy and sympathy for both Lily and Albert, as if they were real people.  I would absolutely have this book in my classroom and I think it would be a great book for students to read as a class assignment while learning about World War II.  Although it is not a biography or historical book, the events that took place in terms of the war are very real.  There is also something to be said for reading about the war and how it affected families—especially children—from all backgrounds through the perspective of a fifth grade child.  Having this book being told from that point of view puts the events of the war and the effects of the war on a very relatable level for children.