Whistling Past the Graveyard

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. In what ways does the “whistling past the graveyard” metaphor (109) illuminate the characters’ behaviors throughout the novel?

2. Susan Crandall’s portrayal of 1963 Mississippi shares themes with Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird but offers a different perspective on racial tensions in the South. What did you find most compelling about Crandall’s approach to similar material?

3. What aspects of nine-year-old Starla’s narrative voice did you find most authentic or affecting?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. When have you faced a situation where you had to choose between speaking up immediately or taking a more measured approach like Eula sometimes does? Which strategy did you choose, and was it effective? 

2. Eula tells Starla, “Families is people lookin’ out after each other, not hidin’ behind secrets” (483). In what ways has your own definition of family evolved throughout your life?

3. Which character’s approach to handling injustice or hardship resonated most strongly with you?

4. Starla romanticizes her absent mother until finally meeting her. Have you ever built someone up in your imagination only to be disappointed by reality? How did you respond to this disappointment? 

5. The book explores different responses to racism, from Cyrena’s activism to Eula’s pragmatism. Which approach do you find yourself gravitating toward when confronting social injustices? Why?

6. In what situations have you used humor as a coping mechanism similar to how Eula uses laughter?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The novel portrays varying perspectives on the Civil Rights Movement. How do these differing viewpoints reflect ongoing debates about social change and activism today?

2. What insights does the novel offer about how segregation affected both Black and white communities differently?

3. Stories like Whistling Past the Graveyard and Kathryn Stockett’s The Help present racism through the interaction between Black and white characters in the Jim Crow South. What new perspective does Crandall’s use of a child narrator bring to this subject?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. Crandall uses the metaphor of Starla being a “polar bear mixed in with regular bears” to describe her experience in Black communities (238). What purpose does this imagery serve in the novel’s exploration of race and belonging?

2. How does each main character’s approach to difficult situations evolve throughout the novel?

3. What function does the contrast between Starla’s fantasy of Nashville and its reality serve in the story?

4. How does baking serve as a motif in the novel? What does it symbolize? What other motifs do you notice?

5. Compare and contrast the characters of Mamie, Lulu, and Eula. In what ways do they represent different approaches to motherhood?

6. Starla and Eula both speak in distinctive dialects that reflect their backgrounds. What role does this language variation play in establishing authenticity and character in the narrative?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to write an epilogue set 10 years after the novel’s conclusion, what would happen to Starla, Eula, and James?

2. If this story were set in contemporary America instead of 1963, what social issues might provide the backdrop?

3. Which scene from the novel would you most want to see adapted for film, and why?

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