Has Katherine Paterson written a story, which ends happily or unhappily?

Sophie Thomas

Happiness seems different for all the characters, for Gilly happiness isn’t something she has been able to experience yet. This is due to the fact she does not live with her mother and does not know her mother very well. At the beginning Gilly is very unhappy. Moving from one foster home to another is affecting her badly. She believes that happiness is being with her mother, but her theory soon changes. Gilly realises that being with her mother is not what she wants, being with Maime Trotter however is. Gilly wants to leave Nonnie (Gillys Grandmother) and move back with Maime Trotter. Happiness for William Ernest and Maime Trotter is what they are living in now. Nonnie is very happy when we meet her and she seems happy all the time. The story has an intriguing plot. In the beginning, Gilly comes across as a bully, but we soon see she is emotionally scarred and deep down a lonely, sad girl. Her life with Trotter starts off badly, but they end up getting on well. Gillys Nan introduces herself and secretly pays Gillys mum to visit her. Gilly goes to live with Nonnie, but in the end chapter tells Trotter she wants to come back.

Galadriel Hopkins is an unhappy child. Her need to know her mother is very strong and takes over her life. When the story begins, Gilly is very unhappy. She is eleven years old and unkempt. In the opening chapter we see her first meeting Maime Trotter and her opinion of her is not a nice one. Gilly thinks that the only way she can be happy is to find her mother and live with her. As she does not live with her mother she feels the need to rebel so that The Social Services will send her to her mother. During the story, certain events affect Gilly. Meeting and living near black people for the first time annoys her. Also, when she tries to run away and gets caught by the police it affects her. It makes her worse and want to see her mother more. When Nonnie (Gillys Nan) turns up, Gilly realises she has family she never knew about. By then, Gilly has started to like Maime Trotter so she doesn’t really want to leave and in upset when she is forced to leave. Gilly changes radically by the end. She grows up a lot and isn’t so rebellious. Her need to know her mother is no longer strong and Gilly would rather live with Trotter. She is a much nicer person who is experiencing happiness for the first time. I think it is a happy ending for Gilly as she seems to be happy and she realises that Trotter really does love her.

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William Ernest Teague is another child Maime Trotter is fostering. We don’t learn much about his past, but I don’t think it was a happy one. Both of his parents were killed when he was younger and he is a victim of bullying. I think William is happy, but obviously doesn’t like being bullied. When we first meet W.E, he comes across as a quiet, lonely child. He soon comes out of his shell though, and we see he that he is a talkative, bright boy. At first, Gilly bullies W.E, but she realises that it isn’t very nice, so she tries to get along with him. He begins to like her and they end up being best friends. When Gilly runs away and gets caught, it really hurts W.E. He is devastated because by then they are really close and does not want her to leave ‘Don’t go.’ Pg.84. When she leaves to go and live with Nonnie, he is really upset but he knows that is what she wants so doesn’t say much. By the end, Gilly has made William a lot braver and he sticks up for himself more, but the main thing he wants is for Gilly to come home.

When we first meet Maime Trotter she seems happy and a friendly person. Gilly doesn’t like her, but when Gilly tries to run away Maime Trotter realises she really loves Gilly and when Miss Ellis tells Gilly it would be good for Gilly to go to a different foster home, Maime Trotter won’t let Gilly go. After this incident, Gilly works out that Maime Trotter does like her, so they start to be friendly towards one another. I think Maime Trotter is happy because she has no problems in her life. She has religion and William Ernest- the two most important things in her life. When Gilly leaves, Maime Trotter is upset but understands why Gilly is doing it. I think it is a happy ending for Maime Trotter even though Gilly is not with her. I don’t think Maime Trotter will let Gilly move back because she knows Gilly living with Nonnie is for the best.

When Gilly and Nonnie first meet neither know what to say. In my opinion, Nonnie is not happy when they first meet. She must be upset that her husband (Gillys Grandfather) is dead and that she has hardly heard from her daughter in thirteen years. When Gilly is told she must go and live with Nonnie, she isn’t very happy- ‘I don’t want to live with her.’ Pg 114. Nonnie and Gilly never really talk properly. They don’t really interact well and it seems awkward when they are together. Nonnie feels very sorry for Gilly, and pays Courtney to come and visit Gilly. When Gilly finds out she is very upset, but she knows why Nonnie did it, so she forgives her. I think Nonnie is happy at the end. In my opinion, Nonnie isn’t ready to have Gilly living with her full-time, therefore I think she should let her move back to Maryland, where Gilly can and will be happy.

I thought The Great Gilly Hopkins was going to be a boring book, but it actually turned out to be very interesting. At the beginning, I thought it would be a sad book as the main character was very sad. The beginning was quite boring as it was just about Gilly settling into her new home, but the book got much better. The first couple of chapters were quite sad because they explained about Gillys life and her life isn’t a very happy one. I learnt that you should never take anything for granted and you should always give things or people a chance. Gilly didn’t give William Ernest or Maime Trotter a chance, she immediately thought they weren’t up to her standards, but after a while she realised they were just like her. My views of the characters did change during the story. At the start, I really did not like Gilly; I thought she was really mean and a horrible person. As the book continued though, I realised she was a lonely, hurt person who was rebellious for a reason. She needed love. I thought the ending was a happy one because Gilly wants to come home rather than staying with Nonnie and her mother. All those years she wanted to be with her mother and when they actually met, she didn’t like her. She just wanted Maime Trotter. I do hope that Gilly goes back to live with Maime Trotter, because I think that Maime Trotter is the only person Gilly has ever loved in her life.

By,

Sophie Thomas 9W