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LITERATURE Year 6 2012

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LEARNING ABOUT LOIS LOWRY

BIOGRAPHY

Lois Lowry was born March 20, 1937 in Hawaii to

Robert and Katharine Hammersberg. Her father was

an Army dentist and the family lived all over the

world. She attended Brown University, but left

after her sophomore year to get married and raise a

family of four children. They settled in Maine,

where she returned to college and received her

degree from the University of Southern Maine. Lois

Lowry fulfilled a childhood dream when she began

writing in the mid-1970's. Now divorced, she lives in

West Cambridge with her dog, Bandit, and spends

weekends in her 19th century farmhouse in New

Hampshire.

ABOUT HER WRITING

ois Lowry, author of over 20 novels and winner of the Newbery Medal twice, is a

woman to be taken seriously. This native of Hawaii has become a favorite of

both children and young adults. She has tackled a number of topics in her

literature. Whatever the theme, Lowry portrays realistic life experiences to her

audience.

In her books, Lois Lowry throws her characters and readers into many thought-

provoking situations. The contemporary young adult reader is compelled to confront

society with all of its imperfections. Lois Lowry told Contemporary Authors that she

measures her success as an author by her ability to "help adolescents answer their

own questions about life, identity and human relationships."

Lois Lowry’s Blog, Collections and Videos

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PLOT OVERVIEW

Number the Stars is told from the point of view of ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen.

The story is set in the city of Copenhagen, Denmark in September 1943, the third

year of the Nazi occupation in Denmark.

Annemarie and her best friend Ellen, who is Jewish, live in the same building. Her

older sister Lise died a few years before and her younger sister Kirsti shares

wonderful moments with her.

During a late night visit from Peter Nielsen, a member of the Resistance, and the man

Lise was to marry, Annemarie is told more about the war. The next day the Rosens

must flee. They leave Ellen with the Johansens. During the night, German soldiers

come to the apartment demanding that Mr. Johansen disclose the location of his

friends. He refuses and they search the apartment. Ellen pretends to be one of the

Johansen’s daughters, but her dark hair causes the soldiers to be suspicious. Luckily,

Mr. Johansen is able to show them a baby picture of Lise with dark hair, which

convinces them .

The next day, Mrs. Johansen takes the three girls to her brother Henrik’s home.

Henrik is a fisherman. They pretend to have a funeral in the house, Aunt Birte’s

funeral, an aunt that did not exist. Inside the coffin they hid blankets and clothes

for the people who were to be smuggled.

Henrik takes the first group of people down to his boat. It is then that Annemarie

understands that the people are being taken to safety in Sweden.

Annemarie plays an important role in helping the Jewish people. That night they talk

about the events of the day. Uncle Henrik explains that he hid the passengers in the

bottom of his boat. Uncle Henrik praises Annemarie for her bravery and reassures

her that Ellen is safe and that they will meet again someday.

The war ends in May. Annemarie thinks of the Rosens and realizes that they, along

with all the others will soon be returning home. At the end of the story, Annemarie

takes out the Star of David pendant. It is said that she was heard saying … “I will

wear this necklace until sweet Ellen returns”.

Visit: WWII Memorials

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CHARACTERS

Let’s build a character chart where to assign physical and personality characteristics,

feelings and thoughts. Let’s put our ideas on post-its and keep our chart in our class!!!

Enter this webpage and find out about Characters

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PAINTING PICTURES WITH WORDS

Writers Paint and Create Art … with their Words

Writers paint pictures with words. Unlike movies or television, which show scenes and

characters in action in full colour, books leave these images to the imagination of

their readers.

This is what makes books so enjoyable to read and so interesting when shared.

Lois Lowry uses words to convey a sense of what the characters are feeling in her

novel.

Close your eyes. Think of any character or situation in the novel and describe

what you can see, feel or want to transmit.

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