
The Staircase
Paperback – Picture Book, June 1, 2002
HarperCollins · Paperback · June 1, 2002
How could Lizzy Enders's father abandon her at a girls school run by nuns?
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Who it’s for
- An 1870s school story pairs a chapel staircase legend with questions of faith and perception.
- Themes
- Belonging and religious difference, Faith, Appearances versus reality
- Genres
- 19th-Century U.S., Christian Stories, Girls & Young Women
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.
The Higher Power of LuckySusan Patron, Matt Phelan59% match
Adventures in JamestownNancy LeSourd50% match
Gifts From the SeaNatalie Kinsey53% match
Walk Across the SeaSusan Fletcher52% matchShares 19th-Century U.S.
The Silent BoyLois Lowry50% matchShares 19th-Century U.S.
Blue WillowDoris Gates52% match
The Man Who Was PoeAvi50% match
Botticelli's ApprenticeUrsula Murray Husted50% match
For older readers: Leigh Ann's Civil War, The Letter Writer, Sisters in the Wind
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
How could Lizzy Enders's father abandon her at a girls school run by nuns? She's surrounded by Catholics--but she's Methodist! Shunned by the other boarders, Lizzy befriends a wandering carpenter named José, who with just three tools--and unflagging faith--builds an elaborate spiral staircase in the new chapel in mere weeks. When he disappears without a trace, Lizzy realizes that the way she sees things is not always the way they are.
Continue reading
Inspired by the legend of the "miraculous" staircase in the Chapel of Loretto in Santa Fe, Ann Rinaldi skillfully blends the mystery surrounding the staircase's builder with the daily trials of a spunky thirteen-year-old girl growing up in the 1870s.
Faith and Mystery
An 1870s school story pairs a chapel staircase legend with questions of faith and perception.
Come here for
- A young outsider’s view of belonging and belief
- The mystery around a carpenter and his staircase
Expect
- Daily trials at a girls’ school run by nuns
- A story where appearances may not tell the whole truth
Where it sits
| 19th-Century U.S. | 97% |
|---|---|
| Girls & Young Women | 30% |
| Christian Stories | 23% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- US Biographies
- Boys & Men
- Girls & Young Women
- Wars & Military History
Show all 8 publisher categories
- 19th-Century U.S.
- Horror & Ghost Stories
- Mysteries & Detective Stories
- Christian Stories
- Authors
- Ann Rinaldi
- Publisher
- HarperCollins
- Published
- June 1, 2002
- Format
- Paperback
- Theme
- Belonging and religious difference · Faith · Appearances versus reality
- Reading lane
- US Biographies