The Loud Silence of Francine Green

I found this book particularly relevant for my library, which is housed within a Christian school. Children need to know that it is okay to ask questions, it is good to think for yourself, and it is not necessary to follow along blindly. A book like this makes them work out for themselves what they truly believe.

Francine Green, rule-following, trouble-phobic, nearly invisible good girl meets Sophie Bowman, anarchistic, vocal, free speech advocate, and... they become best friends. Karen Cushman places these girls in a Catholic School setting, in Hollywood, California, from 1949-1950. It's a time of paranoia filled with blacklisting and accusations of spying for the Russians. With her typical humor and grace, Cushman helps readers see both girls thinking about who they are and what they believe. Francine, for one, learns that you speak as loudly by remaining silent in the face of bullying/injustice as you do by taking a stand. This book presents a nasty, embarassing time in America's history with great insight and wit. I loved the characters, the dialogue, and the writing of this book.

"One push of the button And a shot the world wide And you never ask questions When God's on your side." --Bob Dylan "We closed our books and knelt down in the aisles next to our desks. After a quick Our Father and Hail Mary, Sister Basil said, 'Our Lady, holy Mother of God, we humbly beseech you to intercede for us with your divine Son that we may be with Him forever in Paradise. Ask Him to halt the Red Tide pouring out from Russia and lead the Godless communists to the True Church, for only then will there be Salvation for the Russian people and true peace for us all. And, if it be His will, may we be victorious over Saints Peter and Paul today on the volleyball court.' "I knew Saints Peter and Paul was a school, like All Saints, but still Iimagined two old bearded saints in robes playing volleyball. I gurgled in my throat at the picture but didn't dare laugh out loud. Sister Basil would tie my tongue to the flagpole or something. "Sophie gave a muffled snort. It was not muffled enough. "Sister Basil rose from the ground like a column of smoke. 'Stand up,' she commanded. We stood. " 'Not all of you,' Sister said, grabbing her pointer and smacking it on the floor. 'Just Miss Bowman.' The rest of us knelt down again. I leaned back against my heels. This could take awhile. " 'You have a comment, Miss Bowman?' " 'It just seemed silly, Sister, praying to win a ball game. Does God really care who wins?' " 'That will do, Sophie.' " 'And what if students at Saints Peter and Paul School pray too? What will God do? " 'That's enough Sophie.' " 'And why are we praying to win a volleyball game anyway when there are real problems in the world?' "Sister Basil banged her pointer on the blackboard. 'Blessed Harvey, patron saint of croaking frogs, save me from this child!' " 'And...' "Sister lunged at Sophie, grabbed her by her hair, and pulled her to the front of the classroom. 'Enough! Enough of your interruptions, your blasphemy, and your impertinence! Here,' she said, pointing to the wastebasket in the corner, 'stand here where everyone can see you. And think about your sins.' Sophie stood next to the wastebasket, but Sister grabbed her hair again. 'No, Miss Bowman, in the basket. And don't slouch.' " Francine Green is an eighth-grader at All Saints School for Girls (aka the Sinless Academy for the Maidenly). Francine is a middle child who has never questioned authority or even contemplated such a concept until she becomes friends with Sophie Bowman, a motherless, only child, whose father is a Hollywood scriptwriter. Sophie, who lives in Francine's neighborhood, is enrolled in All Saints after being expelled from the local public school for writing, "There is no free speech here" on the gymnasium floor in red paint. In 1949 Hollywood, Francine and Sophie are living through a time of tremendous fear as Russia has just tested its first nuclear weapon, and President Truman has called for development of the hydrogen bomb. "I knew what atomic bombs could do. I

Author Karen Cushman gently guides readers of "The Loud Silence . . . " through the 1949-1950 school year of affronts to youthful idealism, and a teacher who is border-line frightful. Even more scary, though, is the situation of parents who fear loss of jobs & neighborhood approval ratings when the shadow of the Cold War & its terminal ironies invaded their Peace. When ration coupons were no longer being counted, people settled into more 'normal' lives - WHY were those lives made wretched by politicians hoping to piggy-back their way to power via blacklisiting & innuendo? The world expands in our teen years and we don't necessarily welcome the intrusion of that world's problems in our personal struggles for friendship & status. We may wring all the importance we can from our parents' status but our belly-aching over kitchen chores & annoying siblings never wanes. That is the status quo we want to hang on to. Francine was the "careful" child who obeyed rules to earn approval. She lived in times which allowed her mother to send her off with grocery lists & much younger brother Artie. Delores, the superior older sister, was a plague many teens will recognize. Ironically, in a Catholic girls' school where astrology would be frowned on, Francine Green and Sophie Bowman were destined to become 'best friends' because of their differences. To this reader, who also enjoyed both parents with their differences, and Francine's mother who could make a birthday treat out of a trip to Forest Lawn cemetery, both girls were happy reminders of past friendships & struggling with issues. In class, Francine learned about things 'ironic' . . . her Christmas thank-you notes should make even *Miss Manners* smile. My oldest sister 'saw to it' that I was raised on sarcasm, so I suppose I didn't need irony but I greatly appreciate how it is used as a leitmotif in Cushman's story. Students were taught to be "proud when ... able to use what we learn in class in our real lives!" The spoken word also had appeal for Francine; she might become an actress & someday co-star with Montgomery Clift. Reading Cushman's deft tale is good for today's 13-year-olds, who are also learning about the dissolving stage lights of "peacetime" & the threat of darkness. Freedom of expression can be lost in many ways. How could people who were just getting their lives 'put back together' after WW2 allow the accusations of "pinko" or "commie" to be flung about, and other liberties to be snatched away? Those should have been peaceful days of recovery, with flowers replacing Victory gardens, & with movie stars smooshing any raw edges. Instead, Francine muses that "Fear had come into the Bowman's house like fog, silent and clammy, making me shiver." Author Karen Cushman is skilled at weaving this tapestry of those deeply interred days. June 1950 was too early to recognize the ultimate sainthood of Army counsel Joseph Welch who broug

One day the materials specialist of my library system hands me an uncorrected proof of, "The Loud Silence of Francine Green". "Read this", she says. "You weren't alive at that time so we'll see what you think". A quick glance at the author and I am stunned. First of all, Karen Cushman's back, baby! Until this book came out we hadn't heard a peep from her after she wrote "Rodzina". Secondly, this book does not take place in the distant past. Cushman's always been most comfortable with books set in a medieval or pioneering historical time. This book takes place in 1950s L.A. It's still the past, but not so very distant. Now I am not exactly an unbiased reviewer of this title. I want to be clear about this from the start. I'm married to a man who wrote a film that takes place in 1950s Hollywood and that discusses the Red Scare at length. This book does the same thing, only in a way that informs kids without "teaching" them in a deeply dull didactic way. It's also directly in line with my own personal politics. Discussions of communism in children's books.... well it's never really come up. So how far have we come as a nation? A read of this book is all you need. "I just want to live my life without any problems, without getting into any trouble". So sayeth Francine Green. She's attends Catholic school, is living in Los Angeles in 1949, and the two together can mean only one thing. She's gaga over Montgomery Clift, of course! Of course, 1949 can be a disturbing time for a girl to grow up in. Francine has also just become friends with the irrepressible and outspoken Sophie Bowman. Sophie's the kind of kid who has always been encouraged to seek out the truth and to ask questions. Needless to say, such actions aren't exactly smiled upon at All Saints School for Girls. Sophie needs Francine because she's humorless, earnest, and uninterested in basic things like dancing and movie stars. Francine needs Sophie because Sophie is brave and always does what she thinks is right while Ms. Green would prefer to hide under a desk and remain invisible until all conflict has swept past. Together they face the times in which they live. The Red Scare is heating up, good people are getting blacklisted, anyone with a Russian accent is fingered as a communist, and Francine's dad is digging a fallout shelter in the backyard. This is the world in which Francine lives and a world that is becoming more confusing and unintelligible the more she learns about it. Welcome to the 1950s! The thing about this book is that I was Francine Green when I was a kid. Granted, I didn't have nuns beating the notion of unquestioning obedience into my head. I didn't need to. I followed the rules and didn't make waves and basically was dull dull, deathly deadly dull. So when I realized that Francine had the same problems I did as a kid, I was delighted. My husband, in contrast, was exactly like Sophie Bowman. He was the kid who got reported to the principal by a bus driver for saying he didn