Lily's Crossing

There are some books that you read and they stay with you forever. There are others that you read over and over again. Then there are the books that you read that you enjoy while you are reading them, but they are not particularly memorable. Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff is one of those books. Giff has written quite a few books, most notably Nory Ryan's Song and Pictures of Hollis Woods.

Here's a book that if you like Giff's work and missed this one when it first came out, you certainly should read it. It's a 2000 Caudill Nominee and it earned Newbery Honors in 1998 along with Ella Enchanted which won the Caudill award in 2000 against Lily's Crossing. One, quite memorable and the other, not so much.

My problem with Lily's Crossing is that it is the type of book that a teacher will read to her class or require her class to read in conjunction with a study of World War II. They will use it to teach about the Nazi atrocities. They will use it to teach about Jewish refugees. They will use it to teach how families suffered at home when their loved ones were called to serve in the military. This particular book will be used to teach why lying is wrong. The kids will be force-fed and they will HATE it.

But there are kids, primarily girls that gravitate to historical fiction, who will be allowed to read it for pleasure and they will love it. The young heroine is safe on American soil. The war is far away. She is affected by the war in various ways, but nothing life-threatening. She is introduced to the idea of living through a war and surviving it by a young boy named Albert, a Hungarian refugee.

The heroine, Lily, would argue with me there. Her life is tough and now it's tougher. Lily's mother died and now she lives with her father and grandmother in New York. Every summer to escape the dirt and grime and busyness of the city, the family escapes to Rockaway Beach where Lily gets to swim and play with her best friend Margaret. And she does NOT have to practice the piano.

This year is different. Her father has joined the army. They need engineers in France now that the Allies have landed there. And Margaret must move away with her family to Detroit. Her father is going to work in a factory building bombers. Lily is left with Gram who knows how to spoil all of the fun. Not to mention, father paid to move her piano to Rockaway so she would not miss practice!

Enter Albert, the nephew of a neighbor. Albert's family fled Hungary and the Nazis. Albert's parents were killed by the Nazi's, but Albert and his sister Ruth escaped to France. Albert was allowed to come to America to join his Aunt and Uncle in Rockaway, but an illness prevented Ruth from joining him. And this depressed child is who Lily has left to play with?

The number one strike against Lily is her penchant for lying. She lies to her grandmother on a daily basis mainly to get out of work or procrastinate a little longer. She lies to the postman out of impatience to get a letter from her father. And she lies to Albert. She tells him she can teach him how to swim so he can swim the Atlantic to reach Ruth. Unfortunately, he believes her and Lily must risk her life to save him from her lie.

Albert has secrets too. And perhaps that is what draws the two together. Either that or their combined efforts to save a drowning kitten. The book is wrapped up very neatly and has a very happy ending. Like I said, it is very good while you're absorbed in it, but if historical fiction is not your thing, you probably aren't missing anything.