Living in Paris in the 1880s, Andre, a nine-year-old who was taken in by a neighbor after his parents died, earns his keep by helping Mr. Malet deliver coal. On his rare breaks from work, he sneaks down the street to a shop where Mr. Bartholdi is supervising the construction of a gigantic lady made of copper. It is meant to be a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States, they tell him. Fascinated by the process, Andre returns day after day to watch and, as he watches, he develops a great curiosity about the place to which the completed statue will be delivered. When it is finally shipped to the United States, Andre decides to travel with it on the same ship--as a stowaway. Although Andre is a fictional character, the details about the building of the Statue of Liberty and its perilous journey overseas are based on facts. Children who are making the transition from beginning readers to longer chapter books will find a lot of drama and a surprising amount of depth in this extremely accessible story. (Ages 6-9)