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Summary
Summary
In this companion to the Newbery Honor-winning Lily's Crossing , thirteen-year-old Genevieve risks everything to defy the Nazis and join the French Resistance.
Winner of the Christopher Award!
It's not always thinking of being happy. Doing the right thing will make you happy.
Despite the farm-work and her irritable grandmother Memé, Genevieve thinks she may have found a new home in Alsace, France, where she spent the summer of 1939. Without much to return to in New York, Gen is ready to see if this new life will make her happy.
But then World War II erupts. The Nazis conquer France.
Now everyone in Alsace must speak German, act German, and think German--or else. Even worse, a cold Nazi officer has commandeered a room in Memé's farmhouse--and he can tell that Gen and her grandmother aren't loyal to the Reich.
But Gen won't be cowed. And when her friend Rémy commits an act of sabotage, she hides him in the last place the Germans will look--in the attic, right above the Nazi's head.
For more thrilling historical fiction, don't miss Island War , a survival story set in the remote Aleutian Islands, occupied by the Japanese during World War II, and A Slip of a Girl , a novel in verse about the Irish Land War of the late 19th century.
Author Notes
Patricia Reilly Giff was born in Brooklyn, New York on April 26, 1935. She knew she wanted to be a writer, even as a little girl. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Marymount College, a Master's of Arts from St. John's University, and a Professional Diploma in Reading and a Doctorate of Humane Letters from Hofstra University.
After she graduated from college, she taught in the public schools in New York City until 1960 and then in the public schools in Elmont, New York from 1964 until 1971. She then became a reading consultant before finally, at the age of 40, deciding to write a book. She also worked as an educational consultant for Dell Yearling and Young Yearling Books and as an advisor and instructor to aspiring writers. Her first book, Today Was a Terrible Day, was published in 1980. She is the author of more than 100 children's books, as well as a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers.
Together with her husband, Giff opened "The Dinosaur's Paw," a children's bookstore named after one of her own stories. She is the author of the Polk Street School books. Lily's Crossing, about the homefront during World War II, was named a Newberry Honor Book by the American Library Association as well as an ALA Notable Book for Children. The novel also won the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor. Her companion book to Lily's Crossing, Genevieve's War, won a 2018 Christopher Award. Pictures of Hollis Woods was also named a Newberry Honor Book and Nory Ryan's Song was named an ALA Best Book for Young Adults.
Patricia Reilly Giff died on June 22, 2021. She was 86.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
In this standalone companion to Giff's Newbery Honor-winning Lily's Crossing, Genevieve, a 13-year-old American, is spending the summer in Alsace with her aloof grandmother, Mémé, when the WWII German occupation begins. Unwilling to flee and leave Mémé behind, Gen stays in France, and their quiet farm life begins to change drastically: a Nazi soldier commandeers a room in Mémé's home; food and animals are acquisitioned by the German army, leaving the French population to starve; books are burned; and French names are erased, replaced with German monikers. When Gen's friend Remy is hurt while working for the underground resistance, she and her grandmother join the fight, hiding him in their attic and helping to plan safe passage out of Alsace. Giff ably illustrates the physical and mental effects of war, and the heroism found in unexpected places and people. The atmosphere of fear and mistrust is viscerally felt, but the resistance provides a sliver of hope amid the grim realities of war. Gen's relationship with her grandmother, which deepens into mutual respect and understanding, is especially rich and engaging. Ages 8-12. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Thirteen-year-old Genevieve is anxious to end her visit with her stern grandmother, Mm, in Alsace, but when she notices that Mm is trying to disguise an injury, she impulsively gives up her planned return to America. A few months later, France falls to the Nazis, and grandmother and granddaughter scramble to hide their food and valuables when the German soldiers begin to arrive. They also help hide Genevieves new friend Rmy, who has accidentally burned himself in an act of sabotage against the Nazis. Much of the interest here comes from the storys setting, in an area where the residents are a mix of people with German and French names and loyalties. Genevieve is initially naive, blurting things out recklessly, but learns gradually that the motives of the various townspeople may not be what they seem at first and that the consequences can be terrible. Like Giffs Newbery Honorwinning Lilys Crossing (rev. 3/97), this story makes the human dynamics of World War II engaging and understandable to middle-grade readers. The book begins dramatically, with Genevieve and Mm in the cellar while bombs are falling, and never reaches that level of excitement again; but todays readers may find the presentation of the Resistance especially compelling. susan dove lempke (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Giff explored WWII on the home front in Lily's Crossing (1997), Willow Run (2005), and Gingersnap (2014), and her latest places an American girl in the crucible of war-torn Europe. After spending the summer of 1939 in Alsace with Mémé, her stern grandmother, 13-year-old Genevieve intends to return to America before the Germans invade France. Instead, for reasons she doesn't entirely understand, she decides to stay and help Mémé on her farm. German soldiers occupy the area, deporting Jewish residents and housing an officer in Mémé's farmhouse. Genevieve and her grandmother hide their food, their family treasures, and, later, their friend Rémy, a boy from the village who is hunted by the Nazis. Resistance is not a new idea to the people of Alsace, and soon it becomes a way of life for Genevieve as well. Giff accomplishes a great deal in this engaging chapter book: the vivid picture of life in occupied Alsace, the convincing portrayal of a girl growing up quickly in difficult times, and the gradual replacement of Genevieve's antipathy for her grandmother with respect and love. More accessible to middle-grade children than most novels set in Europe during the period, this novel is full of hardship, peril, and quiet heroism.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2017 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-It's 1939. Genevieve and her brother are spending the summer on their grandmother's farm in Alsace, France, near the German border on the eve of World War II. It's Genevieve's first time meeting her grandmother, whom she finds difficult. It's a precarious time to be in France, with the prospect of war looming. To further complicate things, Genevieve has a ticket on what is said to be the last boat leaving for the United States. Despite her reservations about her grandmother, she impulsively decides to stay with her, without realizing what her life will become. Shortly afterward, German soldiers occupy the area. Everyone must go by German names and speak German, and Genevieve and her family are forced to house a Nazi soldier. The upcoming years are a transformative time for both Genevieve and her grandmother as they struggle to survive and help others throughout the war. This companion to Lily's Crossing is best suited for strong readers. Orienting to the politically charged setting and understanding the convoluted set of circumstances that have placed Genevieve in the middle of a war make the first section of the novel a little overwhelming. By the second half, the book becomes more plot-focused and easier to follow. The Nazi occupation and looming uncertainty about who can be trusted result in a suspenseful read. The narrative spans the whole length of the war, and Giff skillfully takes Genevieve from an impulsive 13-year-old to a thoughtful and compassionate young woman; there is crossover appeal to a YA audience. A basic familiarity with the Second World War and with the Alsace region, or some research while reading, will deepen children's comprehension of the work. -VERDICT A well-crafted look at how World War II impacted civilians, with great potential for classroom use.-Juliet Morefield, Multnomah County Library, OR © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
An American teenage girl gets to play a role in the Resistance movement after she impulsively stays in Alsace, France, just before World War II begins.After spending the summer on her grandmother's farm, 13-year-old white Genevieve can't bear to go back to New York so soon. Although she considers Mm disagreeable, she finds French farm life invigorating and loves her new friends, Katrin and Rmy. But when Nazi soldiers reclaim Alsace and one of them insists on living in their very house, life becomes a test of endurance and wits. Genevieve eventually learns to appreciate Mm, gets to hear stories of her own deceased father, and comes to understand the importance of the long-standing relationships that develop in small European towns. Genevieve transforms from scattered and impetuous "Flyaway Girl," as her aunt calls her, to confident, determined, and compassionate young woman. Related in the first person by Genevieve, this is a competent, endearing novel about the consequences of choices and how quickly and deeply ordinary life is upended by war. Further, Genevieve's frequent quandaries about trust and betrayal in a changing landscape are timeless in their relevance. An engrossing story that examines the nature of character and maturity while putting a young girl at the center of action and suspense. (Historical fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
