Patricia Reilly Giff – författare

Rosie plans to surprise her grandfather on his birthday by getting her dance class to perform "Cinderella," his favorite ballet.

It''s September again.What does it mean for Richard "Beast" Best to be left back? It means being teased by his old friends while he''s stuck facing the same old teacher in the same old classroom. He even has to take a special reading class with "babies" like Emily Arrow and Matthew Jackson. And just like last year, he can''t help getting into trouble.But with the help of Mrs. Paris, the reading teacher, Beast starts to enjoy reading and just might find a way to help the second grade win the school banner for best class.From the Trade Paperback edition.

It''s almost Thanksgiving, and Richard Best can''t stop thinking about Ms. Rooney''s Candy Corn contest. Whoever can guess the exact number of yellow-and-orange candies in the jar on Ms. Roney''s desk gets to keep them all. The only problem is Richard has to read a page in a library book for each guess.Smelly Matthew, who sits in front of him, knows they''ll never win. "We''re the worst readers in the class, " he says. But Richard won''t give up. He can already taste those Candy Corns. And before he knows it, he has. Three fat juicy ones.What will Ms. Rooney do when she finds out?From the Trade Paperback edition.

Emily is stuck with crybaby Jill Simon as her "secret Pal" to be kind to for the whole month of December.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Sam is almost 11 when he discovers a locked box in the attic above his grandfather Mack’s room, and a piece of paper that says he was kidnapped. There are lots of other words, but Sam has always had trouble reading. He’s desperate to find out who he is, and if his beloved Mack is really his grandfather. At night he’s haunted by dreams of a big castle and a terrifying escape on a boat. Who can he trust to help him read the documents that could unravel the mystery? Then he and the new girl, Caroline, are paired up to work on a school project, building a castle in Mack’s woodworking shop. Caroline loves to read, and she can help. But she’s moving soon, and the two must hurry to discover the truth about Sam.From the Hardcover edition.

It''s the first day back to school after winter vacation, and Richard Best is off to a bad start. Who ever heard of a January without any snow? And as usual, he has already forgotten something--the ruler Ms. Rooney had told him to bring for dinosaur day. Luckily Richard finds a ruler in his desk--with a dinosaur''s initials--and he''s sure the ruler is special. And then he finds out it has magic powers.All his wishes begin to come true: Snow stars falling, he remembers to do his homework, and the bully Drake Evans gets sick. But now with Drake sick in bed, Richard begins to worry. His only hope is the magic ruler--but it''s gone.What will help him?From the Trade Paperback edition.

The children in Ms. Rooney''s room are supposed to be writing about real people, but writing is Beast''s worst subject.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Nory Ryan''s family has lived on Maidin Bay on the west coast of Ireland for generations, raising a pig and a few chickens, planting potatoes, getting by. Every year Nory''s father goes away on a fishing boat and returns with the rent money for the English lord who owns their cottage and fields, the English lord bent upon forcing the Irish from their land so he can tumble the cottages and clear the fields for grazing. Times are never easy on Maidin Bay, but this year, a terrible blight attacks the potatoes. No crop means starvation. Twelve-year-old Nory must summon the courage and ingenuity to find food, to find hope, to find a way to help her family survive.From the Hardcover edition.

It''s August, and Emily has big plans at the library. She''s going to read lots of books and tack a paper fish next to her name for each one. Then Dawn Bosco says she can read more books than Emily. Not only that, both Emily and Dawn want to keep Pickle Puss, a stray cat thay found. They decide that whoever reads the most books can keep cat.When Emily adds a fish for a book she read along time ago, she has one more fish than Dawn. She knows she''s cheating, but she wants to keep the cat. What a pickle she''s in.From the Trade Paperback edition.

This Newbery Honor book about a girl who has never known family fighting for her first true home “will leave readers . . . satisfied” (Kirkus Reviews).   Hollis Woods is the place where a baby was abandoned is the baby’s name is an artist is now a twelve-year-old girl who’s been in so many foster homes she can hardly remember them all.   When Hollis is sent to Josie, an elderly artist who is quirky and affectionate, she wants to stay. But Josie is growing more forgetful every day. If Social Services finds out, they’ll take Hollis away and move Josie into a home. Well, Hollis Woods won’t let anyone separate them. She’s escaped the system before; this time, she’s taking Josie with her. Still, even as she plans her future with Josie, Hollis dreams of the past summer with the Regans, fixing each special moment of her days with them in pictures she’ll never forget.   Patricia Reilly Giff captures the yearning for a place to belong in this warmhearted story, which stresses the importance of artistic vision, creativity, and above all, family.From the Hardcover edition.

April is invention month. "We''re going to  make our own inventions," says Ms. Rooney, "and  work together in  groups."Though Emily Arrow knows it''s important for each  group to think, listen, and share, she still wishes  she were the leader of her invention group. Linda  Lorca, the bossy leader, can''t get anyone to  cooperate. "Snaggle doodles," Emily says. If  the group doesn''t come up with an idea soon,  they''ll be the worst group in the  class.Meanwhile, Emily is also busy thinking of a  wedding present for Ms. Vincent, the student teacher.  The wedding is only a few days away. Emily has a lot  to do. Can she and her group learn to work  together in time?From the Trade Paperback edition.

February is fun.It''s time for everyone in Ms. Rooney''s room to make cards for the Valentine box. Emily Arrow couldn''t be happier when Dawn Bosco gives her some colored stars to decorate her cards. She plans to make a special one for Ms. Vincent, the new student teacher.But things take a turn for the worse when Ms. Rooney asks Emily to be class monitor. Emily feels important sitting at the teacher''s desk, until Sherri Dent leaves her seat without Emily''s permission. Emily reports her. That''s when Sherri tells Emily, "You''ll be sorry."Emily is really worried. What will Sherri do to get even?From the Trade Paperback edition.

Brooklyn, 1875: Bird Mallon lives on Water Street where you can see the huge towers of the bridge to Manhattan being built. Bird wants nothing more in life than to be brave enough to be a healer, like her mother, Nory, to help her sister Annie find love, and to convince her brother, Hughie, to stop fighting for money with his street gang. And of course, she wishes that a girl would move into the empty apartment upstairs so that she can have a new friend close by. But Thomas Neary and his Pop move in upstairs. Thomas who writes about his life in his journal--his father who spends each night at the Tavern down the street, the mother he wishes he had, and the Mallon family downstairs that he desperately wants to be a part of. Thomas, who has a secret that only Bird suspects, and who turns out to be the best friend Bird could ever have.From the Hardcover edition.

1944Meggie Dillon’s life has been turned upside down by World War II. Her older brother Eddie enlisted and was shipped off to fight in Europe. And people say that anywhere else Grandpa would be turned in because he’s German, and people might think he’s a spy. Is it true? Could Grandpa be taken away?Meggie’s father has announced that they must help the war effort and move to Willow Run, Michigan, where he’ll work nights in a factory building important war planes that will help fight the enemy in Europe. Willow Run will be the greatest adventure ever, Meggie thinks. There she meets Patches and Harlan, other kids like her whose parents have come here to do their part in the war. And there she faces questions about courage, and what it takes to go into battle, like Eddie, and how to keep hope alive on the home front.From the Hardcover edition.

It’s August 1941, and Brick and Mariel both love the Brooklyn Dodgers. Brick listens to their games on the radio in Windy Hill, in upstate New York, where his family has an apple orchard; Mariel, once a polio patient in the hospital in Windy Hill, lives in Brooklyn near the Dodgers’ home, Ebbets Field. She was adopted by Loretta, a nurse at the hospital, and has never known what happened to her own mother. Someday, somehow, she plans to return to Windy Hill and find out. When a fire destroys their orchard, Brick’s parents must leave the farm to find work. They send him to live in Brooklyn with their friend Loretta, even though Brick knows that their elderly neighbors need his help to pick what’s left of the apples. The only good thing about Brooklyn is seeing the Dodgers play–that, and his friendship with Mariel. Maybe, together, they’ll find a way to return to Windy Hill, save the harvest, and learn the truth about Mariel’s past.From the Hardcover edition.

Charlie has lots of ideas. Need something to go sky high? Ah-ha! The zinger-winger! Need to launch a cheese popper into soup? The amazing popper-upper! But the zinger-winger zings more than wings and the popper-upper plops. Charlie isn''t allowed to invent for a week. Meanwhile, the afterschool invention fair is coming up. He needs time to make something special. Good thing he has his friends and Mr. Redfern, another inventor, to help him out.

The Zigzag Zebras have been challenged by the Timpanzi School Tigers to a race. They''ll have to practice hard. Too bad Gina is a better opera singer than a runner. Ramon has them running all over—in the schoolyard, down Stone Street, back into the gym, down the stairs. They have to win!

It''s 1944, W.W. II is raging. Jayna''s big brother Rob is her only family. When Rob is called to duty on a destroyer, Jayna is left in their small town in upstate New York with their cranky landlady. But right before he leaves, Rob tells Jayna a secret: they may have a grandmother in Brooklyn. Rob found a little blue recipe book with her name and an address for a bakery. When Jayna learns that Rob is missing in action, she''s devastated. Along with her turtle Theresa, the recipe book, and an encouraging, ghostly voice as her guide, Jayna sets out for Brooklyn in hopes of finding the family she so desperately needs.

We will dance on the cliffs of Brooklyn.Maggie’s Door is the story of the journey from Ireland to America told by both Nory and her neighbor and friend Sean Red Mallon, two different stories with the same destination—the home of Nory’s sister Maggie, at 416 Smith Street, Brooklyn, America. Patricia Reilly Giff calls upon her long research into Irish history and her great powers as a storyteller in this deeply involving, riveting stand-alone companion novel to Nory Ryan’s Song.From the Hardcover edition.

SEWING! NO ONE could hate it more than Dina Kirk. Endless tiny stitches, button holes, darts. Since she was tiny, she’s worked in her family’s dressmaking business, where the sewing machine is a cranky member of the family.When 13-year-old Dina leaves her small town in Germany to join her uncle’s family in Brooklyn, she turns her back on sewing. Never again! But looking for a job leads her right back to the sewing machine. Why did she ever leave home? Here she is, still with a needle and thread—and homesick to boot. She didn’t know she could be this homesick, but she didn’t know she could be so brave either, as she is standing up to an epidemic or a fire. She didn’t know she could grow so close to her new family or to Johann, the young man from the tailor’s shop. And she didn’t know that sewing would reveal her own wonderful talent—and her future. In Dina, the beloved writer Patricia Reilly Giff has created one of her most engaging and vital heroines. Readers will enjoy seeing 1870s Brooklyn through Dina’s eyes, and share her excitement as she discovers a new world.From the Hardcover edition.

A contemporary and irresistible story from Patricia Reilly GiffLidie lives in Jales, Brazil, where she’s free to ride, to be a wild girl, and to dream of going to live with her father and older brother, Rafael, in New York City. Finally Lidie is 12—time to leave Brazil for New York.Meanwhile, a filly is born and begins her journey to a new home. As Lidie’s story unfolds, so does the filly’s.Lidie’s father runs a stable at a famous race track, and Rafael is training to be a jockey. As much as they want to make Lidie feel welcome, they still think of her as the little girl they left behind. They don’t even know what a strong rider she is, and that she’s determined to befriend and ride the wild filly her father has just bought: Wild Girl.From the Hardcover edition.

The author of the beloved Kids of the Polk Street School series introduces a new generation of readers to a multicultural group of kids who enjoy all the activities of an after-school center. I''M #1! That’s what Mitchell McCabe’s favorite T-shirt says. He''d like to be Number One at the Zigzag Afternoon Center, where there are lots of fun activities to choose from: swimming, nature walks, field trips, art, even homework help. And YAY—there''s snack time! But Mitchell is worried. What if he''s the only kid who doesn’t get a prize on Prize Day? Luckily, Mitchell realizes he''s a winner at something terrific. In this delightful new series, award-winning author Patricia Reilly Giff introduces readers to a quirky, lovable group of kids, capturing all the excitement and surprises of new friends and after-school fun.From the Trade Paperback edition.

The author of the beloved Kids of the Polk Street School series introduces a new generation of readers to a multicultural group of kids who enjoy all the activities of an after-school center.It’s Discovery Week at the Zigzag Afternoon Center! Everyone writes their discoveries on a big sheet of paper in the hallway. But Destiny Washington can’t think of anything new to discover. Before she knows it, Destiny has told a BIG whopper. And snooty Gina, who’s great at discovering things, knows all about it. Destiny has to find a way out of the whopper. In the end, she makes the best discovery of all. In this delightful new series, award-winning author Patricia Reilly Giff introduces readers to a quirky, lovable group of kids, capturing all the excitement and surprises of new friends and after-school fun.From the Trade Paperback edition.

When Charlie hears that special buzz in his head, he knows it means one thing: an idea for a new invention. But Charlie''s ideas tend to backfire—such as the flying feet that don''t really fly. If only Charlie could make his inventions work, people might think he''s as special as his older brother, Larry. Then the Zigzag afternoon center organizes a Come as a Character Day, and Charlie gets his chance to shine.From the Hardcover edition.

In the fourth book in the Zigzag Kids series, it''s showtime at the Zelda A. Zigzag Afternoon Center. Gina loves to sing and she''s determined to be the star of the play. She''s already told everybody she knows to come see her. But her friend Destiny wants to be the star, too!From the Hardcover edition.

Mitchell really doesn''t want to go camping with the other kids at the Zigzag Afternoon Center. Sleeping in the woods with creepy crawly things, coyotes, and bears? Yikes! But his best friend Habib is going, and it''s Mitchell''s birthday that weekend. He''s just got to find a way to be brave, and scare the bears away!As the fifth book in the Zigzag Kids series—which also includes Number One Kid, Big Whopper, Flying Feet, and Star Time—Bears Beware continues to delight readers with award-winning author Patricia Reilly Giff''s quirky, lovable group of kids, capturing all the excitement and surprises of new friends and after-school fun.

A story of the American Revolution from two-time Newbery Honor–winning author Patricia Reilly Giff. While staying with her aunt, Elizabeth finds something remarkable: a drawing. It hangs on the wall, a portrait of her ancestor, Eliza, known as Zee. She looks like Elizabeth.The girls’ lives intertwine as Elizabeth’s present-day story alternates with Zee’s, which takes place during the American Revolution. Zee is dreamy, and hopeful for the future—until the Revolution tears apart her family and her community in upstate New York. Left on her own, she struggles to survive and to follow her father and brother into battle. Zee’s story has been waiting to be rediscovered by the right person. As Elizabeth learns about Zee, and walks where Zee once walked and battles raged, the past becomes as vivid and real as the present. In this beautifully crafted, affecting novel from beloved author Patricia Reilly Giff, the lives of two girls reflect one another as each finds her own inner strengths.From the Hardcover edition.

Rachel, Cassie, and Joey live in the city with their Pop, until Pop''s search for work lands the family on a run down farm. Dreamy Rachel loves to read, and doesn''t know much about the country. Times are hard there, too—the school and library are closed.  When Pop gets work near Canada, he has to leave the children on the farm alone. For two months! But Rachel''s the oldest, and she''ll make sure they''re all right. Somehow.From the Hardcover edition.