The Great Gilly Hopkins
by Katherine Paterson · Grades 4–6
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson is on US reading lists at grades 4–6. It appears on 3 lists: 3 book-award lists, across 3 states. Every citation below links to the primary source.
Before you buy: Grades 4–6 · 108 pages. The button opens the paperback edition (ISBN 9780061975172). If the class uses a set edition or translation, match its ISBN first.
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Widely assigned — 3 curriculum lists · 3 states
Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).
This page shows where The Great Gilly Hopkins is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
Reading level at a glance
- Grade range
- Grades 4–6
- Pages
- 108
- Reading time
- about 2 hours (est.)
- First published
- 1978
- ISBN-13
- 9780061975172
Sources: grade range from the cited lists below, last checked 2026-07-07; pages and year from our catalog record (sources); reading time is an estimate at 250 words a minute.
Good fit for grade 3?
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New to these terms? Reading levels by grade
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About this book
Book facts and sources (3)
- Awards won
- On award reading lists
- William Allen White Children's Book Award (source: wawchildrensbookaward.com)
- Catalog record
- First published 1978 · 108 pages (edition lengths vary) (source: how we source book data)
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Where this book is recommended
Iowa Children's Choice Award
- recommended·3rd grade · Iowasource: Iowa Children's Choice Award winners (Iowa Association of School Librarians), via Goodreads award record — 1981
- recommended·4th grade · Iowasource: Iowa Children's Choice Award winners (Iowa Association of School Librarians), via Goodreads award record — 1981
- recommended·5th grade · Iowasource: Iowa Children's Choice Award winners (Iowa Association of School Librarians), via Goodreads award record — 1981
- recommended·6th grade · Iowasource: Iowa Children's Choice Award winners (Iowa Association of School Librarians), via Goodreads award record — 1981
Massachusetts Children's Book Award
- recommended·4th grade · Massachusettssource: Massachusetts Children's Book Award winners (Salem State University), via Goodreads award record — 1981
- recommended·5th grade · Massachusettssource: Massachusetts Children's Book Award winners (Salem State University), via Goodreads award record — 1981
- recommended·6th grade · Massachusettssource: Massachusetts Children's Book Award winners (Salem State University), via Goodreads award record — 1981
William Allen White Children's Book Award
- recommended·4th grade · Kansassource: William Allen White Children's Book Award (Emporia State University) — Kansas's statewide children's-choice program (est. 1952; students read the annual nominees and vote). Winner list 1953-2025 per the William Allen White Award record.
- recommended·5th grade · Kansassource: William Allen White Children's Book Award (Emporia State University) — Kansas's statewide children's-choice program (est. 1952; students read the annual nominees and vote). Winner list 1953-2025 per the William Allen White Award record.
- recommended·6th grade · Kansassource: William Allen White Children's Book Award (Emporia State University) — Kansas's statewide children's-choice program (est. 1952; students read the annual nominees and vote). Winner list 1953-2025 per the William Allen White Award record.
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Common questions
- What grade level is The Great Gilly Hopkins?
- The Great Gilly Hopkins is listed for grades 4–6. It appears on 3 state book-award lists across 3 states, from grade 3 to grade 6. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- How long does it take to read The Great Gilly Hopkins?
- It takes about 2 hours to read The Great Gilly Hopkins (108 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 120 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign The Great Gilly Hopkins?
- The Great Gilly Hopkins appears on reading lists for Iowa Children's Choice Award, Massachusetts Children's Book Award, William Allen White Children's Book Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is The Great Gilly Hopkins banned in schools?
- The Great Gilly Hopkins does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
Why this book is on this list
How we classifyHide
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
- Grade band
- Grades 4–6 — drawn from the state book-award lists citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 3 curricula on this site (see “Where recommended” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- On state book-award lists in 3 states (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: award-winner, book-club.