The Great Gilly Hopkins (1978) - Katherine Paterson

Written by Katherine Paterson
Read by Alyssa Bresnahan
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Publisher: HarperCollins
Awards: Newbery Honor Book
Release date: August 18, 2009
Duration: 04:39:46

The timeless Newbery Honor Book from bestselling author Katherine Paterson about a wisecracking, ornery, completely unforgettable young heroine.

Eleven-year-old Gilly has been stuck in more foster families than she can remember, and she’s hated them all. She has a reputation for being brash, brilliant, and completely unmanageable, and that’s the way she likes it. So when she’s sent to live with the Trotters—by far the strangest family yet—she knows it’s only a temporary problem.
Gilly decides to put her sharp mind to work and get out of there fast. She’s determined to no longer be a foster kid. Before long she’s devised an elaborate scheme to get her real mother to come rescue her. Unfortunately, the plan doesn’t work out quite as she hoped it would…

This classic middle grade novel has moved generations of readers and inspired a major motion picture starring Octavia Spencer, Kathy Bates, Glenn Close, and Danny Glover. The acclaim for the book included the National Book Award, the Christopher Award, and the Jane Addams Award.

The joys and struggles of adoption, told in a real and accessible way, are beautifully expressed in Katherine Paterson’s The Great Gilly Hopkins. Don’t miss it!

“A kid with an attitude and a wad of gum too big to ignore, Giladreal Hopkins has been worn down by life, by a mother who abandoned her, by four foster homes that didn’t work out. Alyssa Bresnahan captures Gilly’s sharp-edged dialogue with the ideal measure of disdain. Descriptive text is read deliberately, with internal pauses for emphasis and hard end stops to reflect Gilly’s contempt for a world that has failed her. Sweet-voiced Mamie Trotter, Gilly’s enormous end-of-the-line stepmother, is unwavering in her sincerity while Mr. Randolph, the blind neighbor, speaks with the exaggerated drawl of a fine Southern gentleman. Not to be missed, Bresnahan’s reading of this Newbery Honor book and National Book Award winner adds a rich dimension to Gilly’s story._—Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award