Whistling Past the Graveyard

By: Susan Crandall

Narrated by: Amy Rubinate

Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

In the summer of 1963, nine-year-old spitfire Starla Claudelle runs away from her strict grandmother's Mississippi home. Starla hasn't seen her momma since she was three - that's when Lulu left for Nashville to become a famous singer. Starla's daddy works on an oil rig in the Gulf, so Mamie, with her tsk-tsk sounds and her bitter refrain of "Lord, give me strength," is the nearest thing to family Starla has. After being put on restriction yet again for her sassy mouth, Starla is caught sneaking out for the Fourth of July parade. She fears Mamie will make good on her threat to send Starla to reform school, so Starla walks to the outskirts of town, and just keeps walking....

If she can get to Nashville and find her momma, then all that she promised will come true: Lulu will be a star. Daddy will come to live in Nashville, too. And her family will be whole and perfect. Walking a lonely country road, Starla accepts a ride from Eula, a black woman traveling alone with a white baby. The trio embarks on a road trip that will change Starla's life forever. She sees for the first time life as it really is - as she reaches for a dream of how it could one day be.

©2013 Susan Crandall (P)2013 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic reviews

"Starla's fiery independence makes her a likable narrator." ( Publishers Weekly)

"It's not easy to keep such a young narrator convincing for more than 300 pages.... Readers will take to Starla and be caught up in her story." ( Booklist)

"A coming-of-age story as well as a luminous portrait of courage and the bonds of friendship.... Susan Crandall tells young Starla's story with pitch-perfect tone, evoking 1963 Mississippi and its struggles with a deft hand. I laughed and cried at Starla's keen observances of life and family and the sometimes blurred edges of justice. Like Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird and Kathryn Stockett's The Help, Whistling Past the Graveyard is destined to become a classic." (Karen White, New York Times best-selling author)

An Interesting Way to Grow Up

Where does Whistling Past the Graveyard rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I have listened to over 5 years of audiobooks. This one is in the top 10% of this particular genre.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Starla, the main character of course. Because the listener hears the story through her thoughts, eyes and voice.

What does Amy Rubinate bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

innocent voice of a child, fraught with frustration, determination, curiosity and strength.

Who was the most memorable character of Whistling Past the Graveyard and why?

Eula because she is the adult female role model that Starla needed in her young life. Starla's grandmother and her friends were such bigots and jerks. Lulu was just a dream. In the short period of time that Eula and Starla were alone together, Eula taught Starla so much about life, caring for people of all backgrounds, self-protection, and how to use her head.

Any additional comments?

A wonderful story that I will listen to again in another year, Lord willing. Very enjoyable. No gratuitous sex or profanity. Good old fashion story telling.

Loved it!

Couldn't stop listening to it! Heartwarming!

I don't like reviewing but felt compelled for this one.

Loved it!! One of my all time favorites

A story of a young white girl and a colored woman before desegregation and their unlikely friendship. Great characters, compelling story. If you enjoyed The Help, you’ll like this one as well.

A wonderful story...

I cried, I laughed, I got angry. This is the Best book I've listened to in a long time. Very well written and narrated with perfection.

Loved the story and characters

I loved this book, i loved the characters and the story. Kept me listening for hours

Could be trite but was a joy!

Stumbled on to this gem. Very good story, characters etc. Perhaps not all the most complex and developed by purist literary standards but engaging, and with enough dimension to keep the play button going non-stop! Hated to come to the end. Loved this adventure.

Great southern writing with a message

Great southern writing with a message...the good the bad and the message uniquely southern

Surprisingly Wonderful

This may be my favorite book in a long time. The story was well written, the characters brought to life. I was drawn in and felt like I was there, in the south, in the early sixties. The narrator was perfect! From the first few words I felt I was sitting next to a young girl from Alabama telling me her story. The accent and cadence so believable. I highly recommend this audio book!

This book was a great Southern read.

I loved every page of it! If you liked “The Help”, you’ll like this. Enjoy!

A nice surprise

My first by Crandall and I very much enjoyed this story. Endearing characters, a story you can engross yourself in. We’ll done.