num_pages: 307
description: The summer of 1963 begins like any other for nine-year-old Starla Claudelle. Born to teenage parents in Mississippi Starla is being raised by a strict paternal grandmother Mamie whose worst fear is that Starla will turn out like her mother. Starla hasnt seen her momma since she was three but is convinced that her mother will keep her promise to take Starla and her daddy to Nashville where her mother hopes to become a famous singerand that one day her family will be whole and perfect.When Starla is grounded on the Fourth of July she sneaks out to see the parade. After getting caught Starlas fear that Mamie will make good on her threats and send her to reform school cause her to panic and run away from home. Once out in the country Starla is offered a ride by a black woman Eula who is traveling with a white baby. She happily accepts a ride with the ultimate goal of reaching her mother in Nashville.As the two unlikely companions make their long and sometimes dangerous journey Starlas eyes are opened to the harsh realities of 1963 southern segregation. Through talks with Eula reconnecting with her parents and encountering a series of surprising misadventures Starla learns to let go of long-held dreams and realizes family is forged from those who will sacrifice all for you no matter if bound by blood or by the heart.
language: English
title: Whistling Past the Graveyard
publisher: Gallery Books