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Back Lyddie
Chapters (36)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise
  3. Books by Katherine Paterson
  4. Dedication
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. Acknowledgments
  29. Dear Reader
  30. Pre-reading Activities
  31. Week One (Chapters 1–6)
  32. Week Two (Chapters 7–12)
  33. Week Three (Chapters 13–18)
  34. Week Four (Chapters 19–23)
  35. Post-reading Activities
  36. What’s next onyour reading list?

She began to giggle, as she used to when she and Charlie had been young.

His solemn face crinkled into lines of puzzlement and then, still not understanding, he crumpled into laughter, as though glad to be infected by her merriment. He took off his broad hat and ran his big hand through his rusty hair. “I will miss thee,” he said.

We can stil hop, Luke Stevens, Lyddie said, but not aloud.

Acknowledgments

SPECIAL THANKS go to Mary E. Woodruff of the Vermont Women’s History Project and Dr. Robert M. Brown of the Museum of American Textile History, who read this book in manuscript and offered suggestions and corrections. Any errors of fact which remain are, of course, my own.

I must also thank the library staff at the museum for their help and patience, Linda Willis at the Mid-State Regional Library of Vermont for locating and ordering materials for me, and Donald George of the Dairy Division of the Vermont State Agriculture Department for answering my questions about cows.

I cannot list all the books and publications to which I am indebted, but I must mention a few without which I could not have written this book:

Thomas Dublin’s Farm to Factory: Women’s Letters, 1830–1860 and Women At Work: The Transformation of Work and Community in Lowell, Massachusetts, 1826–1860; Hannah Josephson’s The Golden Threads: New England’s Mill Girls and Magnates; David Macaulay’s Mill; Abby Hemenway’s nineteenth century compilation of stories from every section of Vermont, Vermont Historical Gazetteer, which includes a story of a hungry black bear that was the seed for the bear story in this book.

And the writings of the Lowell mill girls themselves, including Benita Eisler, editor, The Lowell Offering: Writings by New England Mill Women (1840–45); Factory Tracts published by the Female Labor Reform Association as well as Voice of Industry issues from 1845–48; Lucy Larcom’s A New England Girlhood and An Idyl of Work; and Harriet Hanson Robinson’s Loom and Spindle or Life Among the Early Mill Girls.

Dear Reader

Dear reader:

Lyddie is a historically detailed coming-of-age novel from beloved author Katherine Paterson. Its themes of determination and personal growth resonate with the adolescent reader. Although the book takes place in the 1800s, the novel addresses many issues that are pertinent today, such as working conditions, women’s rights, sexual harassment, and illiteracy.

This guide breaks down the book into four week-long sections, and includes both pre-reading and post-reading activities. The discussion questions and activities are aligned with the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts. In addition, they can be used to differentiate instruction.

This guide was written by Jessica Lonski Miller, M.S.Ed. Jessica is certified in both elementary and special education, and has spent the majority of her career teaching sixth grade. Her greatest accomplishment has been raising three terrific children, all of whom love to read.

Pre-reading Activities

Pre-reading Activities: