What do You think about Maggie's Door (2005)?
Written by award-winning author Patricia Reilly Giff (Newbery Honor Book and ALA Notable Books), Maggie's Door portrays the harrowing journey of Nory and Sean, Irish youth who are escaping the potato famine of the 1840s. Detailed descriptions of extreme hunger, terrible shipboard conditions, and the loss of loved ones make this a tense book at times. But the story will help 5th-7th grade students understand why people left their home countries to become immigrants to America. There was nothing left for them at home: no food, no chance of employment, and many family members had already left or died. Since it is written from the point of view of young teens, students will be able to relate to their feelings of wanting to find their parents and will be very interested to learn how different our lives are today. The book could be a part of literature circles or used to stimulate discussion about poor conditions in other countries as part of an immigration unit. It will make very clear to students why people would leave their home countries to come to America and can serve as a beginning to learning about other countries of origin as well. This book received a Kirkus starred review. A companion book could be the prequel, "Nory Ryan's Song", which describes the conditions in Ireland during the famine before the characters' crossing to America.
—538am_Kelly O'Hara
My sixth graders were required to read this book over the summer if they were enrolled in advanced social studies this year. I finally finished reading the book last week. I wasn't impressed. The main character is a young girl whose family is trying to get to America from Ireland during the potato famine. I didn't feel like there was enough historical background information to convey why it was so important for them to leave their home country. The characters were also one-dimensional. Their arrival in the United States was anti-climactic. I wasn't on the committee that selected this book, and I hope it is not on the list again next year.
—Forgetfulone
416 Smith Street, Brooklyn, America: this is the ultimate goal for Nory Ryan as she flees her famine-ridden home in mid-1800s Ireland. One by one, her family has departed for a new life in America; Nory is the last to go. Keeping her sister Maggie's address close to her heart, Nory embarks on the perilous, heart-breaking journey to Galway and onward. Meanwhile, her friend Sean Red Mallon is just a few days ahead, traveling with his mother and Nory's little brother, Patch, with the same destination in mind. Picking up where Nory Ryan's Song leaves off, award-winning author Patricia Reilly Giff's historical novel tells, in alternating voices, Nory and Sean's stories. Readers will be engrossed in the series of dramatic events, as well as the grueling day-by-day struggle, as the protagonists suffer injuries, thievery, separations, and horrific sea passages. The very real tragedy of the Irish potato famine and the subsequent exodus from that country is brought to life in a fictional account that will make a profound, lasting mark on the memories of young readers. (Ages 9 to 12) --Emilie Coulter
—NSAndrew Liebergen
