Cushman, Karen. The Loud Silence of Francine Green

[Mary]

Francine Green is an 8th grader in an all-girls Catholic school at a time in American history when bomb shelters, blacklisting by the House Committee on Un-American Activities, and fear are all too commonplace. I have been a great fan of Karen Cushman's books for years. This book, set in a much different time period than her other titles, is right on target with the character of Francine Green and her concerns and worries. We should certainly consider placing this book on our Mock Newbery Reading list!

[heather]

This is a great book! You can feel the panic and fear coming off of the pages. An enjoyable read; it belongs on the mock list!

[kmg365]

Posting in green to indicate my jealousy at people who get their hands on books by my favorite authors months before they're actually published. How do I join that club? ;D

[Lydia]

I thought Karen did a great job of capturing the time period -- which was so different from her earlier work.

[martha]

I haven't read everything mentioned on this discussion list yet, but in my mind, this is the Newbery front-runner. Cushman does an amazing job of setting the time and mood of the McCarthy era. Although I know very little about Catholic schools, I think Francine is a well-defined character and her life situation is believable. I could feel chills running up my spine as the Commie-hunting oppression grows stronger. I can see this becoming a favorite for teachers to use in the classroom, too.

[Tess]

I can't quite place my finger on why this doesn't work for me as Newbery. Yes, the characters were strong. Yes, it captures the time period. The parallel with Mister Roberts works. It will be a classroom discussion piece, I imagine. But there is something, something...Maybe it's because I have a difficult time imagining Mr. Bowman putting Sophie in that school and wanting her to get along. Ye gods! I think I need a martooni.