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Lily's Crossing
Trailblazers · 4th–6th
After the newsreel, Lily says, “But we know they were there.” Do she and Albert really know it, or do they only hope it?
The tension The quarrel over climbing the stairs into the movie looks like a fight about money and honesty, but Albert names what lies under it: “When people go away . . .”
Live through the last days of summer with Lily and Albert: a quarrel that is not about the movies, a city set free far away, and a gift Lily plans under the first star.
Summer is almost over. Lily counts the days: soon she goes back to St. Albans and sixth grade, and soon she must say goodbye to Albert. Two weeks ago they wrote to Poppy together, on tissue-thin paper, giving him Ruth’s address in Paris from Albert’s creased scrap of cardboard. Lily tells Albert they can’t count on it, but she doesn’t mean it; she is sure Poppy is in France. For the first time she follows the war. Mrs. Hailey lends them a big map of France for Gram’s kitchen, and Lily moves her finger from Cherbourg to Caen to Rouen to Paris. They swim and fish; Albert puts back what he catches. Then, on Tuesday, they quarrel over the new movie at the Cross Bay Theatre. Albert will not climb the stairs to sneak in: “I am not a thief.” Lily has no money and will not let him lend or give her any, though she does not know why she is so angry. For three days they do not speak. When Albert comes to the dock to swim, Lily tells him she is not a thief either; he raises his eyebrows. Walking along Cross Bay Boulevard, she says she will pay, saving her money for next summer, and stops, wondering if he will ever come back. Albert says he knows why she was angry: “When people go away . . .” Just then Mr. Rowley bursts out of the As Good As New Shoppe: Paris is free. Mrs. Sherman flings out her arms. The mailman calls it the beginning of the end. Lily says Albert can write to Ruth now and Poppy will go to her, while Albert says Ruth is there. Two days later, Albert treats Lily to the movies and popcorn, and they watch the newsreel four times: Notre-Dame, two million people in the Champs Elysées, soldiers on tanks covered with flowers. Crying sounds all through the theater. The crowd shouts “Merci”; Albert whispers “Köszönöm”; Lily says “Thank you.” They search the faces for Ruth and Poppy. In the lobby Albert says they could not see them; Lily says they know they were there, and someday they will ask. Walking home under the first star, Lily decides to peel one of her mother’s stars off the porch wall and give it to Albert before they leave, to paste on the cardboard with Ruth’s address.
Before reading, tell the student that the summer is nearly over, and Lily and Albert have sent a letter to Poppy. Read aloud to “She didn’t know why she was so stubborn, why she was so angry with him.” Stop and ask the student to guess why Lily is so angry. Then read to the end without stopping, and ask whose guess was closer, the student’s or Albert’s.
Retell The student tells the chapter back in order, from Lily counting the days to her plan under the first star. Look for the letter and the map, the quarrel about the stairs and how it ends, the news in the street, the three thank-yous in the theater, and what the friends say in the lobby. Listen for whether the student ends where Giff does, on a gift Lily plans, not one she has given.
Imitate the author After copying, the student writes two sentences of their own about a crowd. The first names a place, renames it after a comma, the way “the main street of Paris, the Champs Elysées” does, and then lists the people in it, each after a comma. The second names a thing and then names it again between commas, the way “the tricolor, France’s flag,” does. Look for the commas, and for people and things the reader can see.
Debate Take sides on the last written question. First list from the chapter what makes it knowing: Lily “was sure of it” before any news came; Albert answers, “And they will tell us”; and both plan to ask “someday.” Then list what makes it hoping: Albert says, “we could not see them”; no word has come from Poppy; Lily could only “almost” picture them; and she once said, “We can’t count on it.” The student argues one side and you argue the other; then switch. Keep to the chapter: no claim that Poppy is in France, that Ruth or Poppy was in the crowd, or that Albert will come back.
Purpose Close with the little plane’s message over Notre-Dame: “Tomorrow we come.” Ask the student to find the other promises about the future in this chapter: Lily’s “next summer . . .,” “someday we’ll ask,” “And they will tell us,” and the star she will give “before they left.” Ask which one they most want to see kept, and why. Leave it open; the chapter does not say.
Easier Read aloud together from “They started along Cross Bay Boulevard” to “I wonder what she is doing now, at this moment.” Retell who says what when the news comes. Talk through the second discussion question, then answer the last written question aloud.
On level Talk through all three discussion questions in order, then have the student write answers to the two written questions in complete sentences, each with a reason and a line from the chapter. For the last one, have the student set Lily’s “we know” beside Albert’s “we could not see them.”
Harder Have the student mark every “almost” in the chapter: “almost time for St. Albans”; “almost time to say goodbye to Albert”; “she could almost feel Poppy there”; “Lily could almost picture them there, together”; “it was almost dark.” Ask what each one holds back. Then have them write a paragraph on which “almost” tells the most about Lily as the summer ends. Claim nothing about where Poppy is or whether Albert comes back.
1. Albert only raises his eyebrows. A little later, Lily answers him as if he had spoken. What does she think he said?Inference
What it asks It asks about the making up. After three days of silence and two afternoons alone in the rowboat, Lily tells Albert, “I’m not a thief either.” “He raised his eyebrows.” They walk along Cross Bay Boulevard, and then Lily says, “Well, all right.” The page says, “Lily spoke as if Albert had said something.” She goes on, “I’ll pay. I’ll save my money this winter, and next summer . . .” The student decides what Lily hears in Albert’s silence. It takes up the hinge’s fault line: the quarrel looks like a fight about money and honesty, and what Lily answers shows what lies under it. If a student says he only doubts her, ask where her answer ends up. If a student says the voice is all her own, ask what the raised eyebrows were for. Keep the money question from becoming the whole story; the chapter ties her anger to Albert’s leaving.
He said she was the one who wanted to climb those stairs. Lily has just told him she is no thief, and his eyebrows doubt her. Her “Well, all right” gives in: the sneaking was her idea, so she offers to pay her own way.
He raised his eyebrows.
I’m not a thief either
I’ll pay.
He said nothing; the voice is Lily’s own. She has been arguing with herself since she “didn’t know why she was so stubborn,” and now she settles it. But the deal she makes runs to next summer, and that is where she has to stop.
She didn’t know why she was so stubborn, why she was so angry with him.
I’ll save my money this winter, and next summer . . .
A strong answer A strong response might say Lily hears him doubting her: she says “I’m not a thief either,” he “raised his eyebrows,” and her “Well, all right” and “I’ll pay” give in to what the eyebrows said. Another might say the voice is her own, since she never knew “why she was so stubborn”; she settles the fight with herself, and her deal runs to “next summer . . .” before she bites her lip. A thoughtful student may notice that either way, paying her way leads Lily straight to the goodbye. Look for an answer tied to the eyebrows or to where the offer ends.
2. Lily can’t finish her sentence about next summer. Soon after, the mailman says what next summer will bring. Why does Giff put them so close together?Author's choice
What it asks It asks about two sentences about next summer. On the walk, Lily says, “I’ll save my money this winter, and next summer . . .” and bites her lip, wondering if Albert will ever come back. Soon after “Paris is free,” the mailman calls, “It’s the beginning of the end. Next summer we’ll have lights on the boardwalk, and the guys will be home.” Then Lily grabs Albert’s arm with plans for Ruth and Poppy. The student decides what Giff gains by setting the two next summers so near each other. It takes up the hinge’s turn from a goodbye Lily dreads to hope. If a student says the mailman only cheers Lily up, ask what his next summer leaves out. If a student says the two only clash, ask what Lily does right after he speaks. The chapter does not say the war is over, or that Albert will come back.
They clash. The mailman’s next summer is the whole town’s, full of lights and men coming home. Lily’s next summer is the one that might not have Albert in it, and no news can answer that.
She bit her lip and glanced at him.
Next summer we’ll have lights on the boardwalk, and the guys will be home.
The news answers her. Lily could not say what next summer would bring, and the mailman says it out loud. “the guys will be home” could mean Poppy, and right away Lily is full of plans again.
and the guys will be home.
Lily grabbed Albert’s arm.
A strong answer A strong response might say the two clash: the mailman’s next summer has “lights on the boardwalk,” but Lily’s may not have Albert, and she bites her lip because she cannot finish it. Another might say the news answers her: “the guys will be home” could mean Poppy, and “Lily grabbed Albert’s arm” full of plans. A thoughtful student may say both are true at once, since the mailman’s hope is for everyone and Lily’s worry is only hers. Look for a reason tied to both sentences, and no claim that the war is over.
3. On the screen, the French crowd shouts “Merci,” and Albert whispers “Köszönöm.” Who is Lily thanking when she says “Thank you”?Theme
What it asks It asks about the three thank-yous in the theater. On the screen, two million people fill the Champs Elysées, and “Young women were throwing kisses at the American soldiers, who were riding on tanks covered with flowers.” In one huge voice, the French shout, “Merci. Merci. Merci . . .” Albert whispers, “Köszönöm.” Lily says, “Thank you.” The student decides whom Lily thanks. It takes up the part of the hinge where the war’s large news meets the friends’ own hopes. If a student says the soldiers, ask whose city is free and who lives there. If a student says she thanks for Albert’s sake, ask who Lily believes is over there for her. Claim nothing about whether Poppy is in France.
The soldiers, and through them Poppy. She sees American soldiers on the tanks, and she is sure Poppy is over there too. Her thanks is for the men who set the city free.
Young women were throwing kisses at the American soldiers, who were riding on tanks covered with flowers.
She knew Poppy was there.
She thanks for Albert’s sake. Paris is not her city, and Ruth is not her sister. But Ruth is there, and Lily says her thanks right after Albert does, in her own words.
Ruth is there. I wonder what she is doing now, at this moment.
Albert whispered it, “Köszönöm.”
A strong answer A strong response might say Lily thanks the soldiers, and Poppy with them: she sees “the American soldiers” on tanks, and “She knew Poppy was there.” Another might say she thanks for Albert’s sake, since Albert has said “Ruth is there,” and her “Thank you” comes right after his “Köszönöm.” A thoughtful student may notice that Lily can hear “crying all through the theater,” so she is also thanking along with everyone, in the only words she has. Look for an answer tied to what is on the screen or to who is sitting beside her.
1. Lily wonders if Albert will ever come back. Why does she want to give him one of her mother’s stars?
What it asks It asks about the chapter’s last paragraph, set beside a question Lily cannot answer. On the walk, right after “I’ll pay,” she wonders, “Would he come back next summer? Would he ever come back?” At the end, under the first star, with “Only a few days were left of summer,” she thinks of “the stars on the porch wall in back of her bed. Her mother’s stars.” She will peel one, and “He could paste it on the little cardboard with Ruth’s address.” The student decides why Lily wants to give something so dear to a friend she may never see again, and writes reasons. It takes up the part of the hinge about meeting a goodbye with hope and a gift. If a student says it is only something to remember her by, ask why it goes on the cardboard with Ruth’s address. If a student says it is only for luck in finding Ruth, ask whose stars they are, and what Lily wondered on the walk. She only plans the gift; the chapter does not show her giving it, or say whether Albert comes back.
A goodbye gift. Lily cannot know if Albert will ever come back, so she gives him a piece of what she loves most. These are her mother’s stars, from the wall behind her bed. The goodbye gets the best thing she has instead of a fight.
Would he ever come back?
Her mother’s stars.
A way to hold on. The star goes on the cardboard Albert keeps, the scrap with Ruth’s address that he carries to find his sister. Wherever he goes, a piece of Lily goes too. She thinks of it under the first star of the night, like a wish that they will meet again.
He could paste it on the little cardboard with Ruth’s address.
Albert had showed her the creased scrap of cardboard with spidery black writing
A strong answer A strong response might say it is a goodbye gift: Lily wonders, “Would he ever come back?”, so she gives him a piece of what she loves most, one of “Her mother’s stars,” and the goodbye gets a gift instead of a fight. Another might say it is a way to hold on: he will paste it “on the little cardboard with Ruth’s address,” the scrap he carries to find his sister, so part of Lily goes with him wherever he goes. A thoughtful student may say it is both, and that not knowing is the very reason to give it now, with “Only a few days” of summer left. Look for reasons tied to the stars and the cardboard, and no claim that she has given it yet or that Albert comes back.
2. After the newsreel, Lily says, “But we know they were there.” Do she and Albert really know it, or do they only hope it?
What it asks It asks the whole question of the chapter. In the theater, Lily and Albert lean forward “staring at the faces surrounding the cathedral, looking for Ruth, looking for Poppy,” and “Lily could almost picture them there, together.” In the lobby Albert says, “Of course, we could not see them,” and “So many people.” Lily answers, “Of course not,” and then, “But we know they were there. And someday we’ll ask . . .” Albert: “And they will tell us.” Earlier, Lily had told Albert, “We can’t count on it,” but “She didn’t mean it, though. She knew Poppy was there. She was sure of it.” The student decides whether this is knowing or hoping, gives reasons, and answers the other side. If a student says they know, ask what Albert says about seeing them. If a student says they only hope, ask what being sure does for the two of them, with a goodbye so close. The card claims nothing about where Poppy or Ruth is, or whether Poppy has the letter.
They know it, in the way that counts for them. Lily has been sure for weeks, and Albert answers with a promise of his own. They know these two people, and that kind of knowing does not need a face on a screen.
She knew Poppy was there. She was sure of it.
And they will tell us.
They only hope it. Albert says it straight out: they could not see them. No word has come from Poppy, and even in the theater Lily could only “almost” picture them. Saying “we know” is what two friends say to keep each other going.
Of course, we could not see them
Lily could almost picture them there, together.
A strong answer A strong response takes a position and answers the other side. A student might argue they know: Lily “was sure of it” long before the newsreel, and Albert answers, “And they will tell us,” as if it were settled. Another might argue they only hope: Albert says, “we could not see them,” no word has come from Poppy, and Lily could only “almost picture them.” A thoughtful student may say the knowing is real for them even if it is not proof, and that with only a few days of summer left, being sure gives them something to hold. Look for the friends’ own words weighed, and no claim that Ruth or Poppy was in Paris.