Ideas & Inspiration for Liar and Spy
Find this title at a library near you.
From the author’s website:
When seventh grader Georges (the s is silent) moves into a Brooklyn apartment building, he meets Safer, a twelve-year-old coffee-drinking loner and self-appointed spy. Georges becomes Safer’s first spy recruit. His assignment? Tracking the mysterious Mr. X, who lives in the apartment upstairs. But as Safer becomes more demanding, Georges starts to wonder: how far is too far to go for your only friend? Liar & Spy is an inspired, often-funny story about destiny, goofy brilliance, and courage. Like Stead’s Newbery Medal-winning When You Reach Me, it will keep readers guessing until the end.
Title-specific resources for your Book to Art Club:
- An interview with author Rebecca Stead on School Library Journal.
- The complete works of Georges Seurat.
- A critical analysis of the technique of pointillism, used by Georges Seurat.
- Learn how to write like a spy with the CIA style manual.
- Project ideas and inspiration for your Book to Art Club projects.
About the suggested projects: The theme of pointillism as an artistic technique and metaphor plays a large part in the novel. Experiment with artistic ways to create a large image with small things, like paint dots or paper hole punches. Spying and spelling out secret messages (Georges often uses Scrabble tiles) can also be an avenue to pursue. Another big theme is that of the science of taste, though how to translate that into visual art is a bit more difficult. If that strikes you, go ahead and create!