While I was interviewing him for The Lions of Little Rock, he mentioned that when he was a student at West Side Junior High, there was a boy who was “there one day and gone the next.” The rumor was that the boy had been black.
My uncle attended Little Rock public schools, including Central High School, a few years before the Little Rock Nine. I eventually decided I could add more to the discussion by writing about the “lost year.”ĭid you come across evidence of black children passing as white in Little Rock public schools of this era? Also, the events of the Little Rock Nine have already been written about by those who were there. Nearly everyone had a sibling, friend or neighbor who was affected by the four public high schools being closed. But as I did more research, I realized this had happened in other places as well, including in my home state of Virginia.Īnd in some ways, more people were affected by the events of 1958-59. It seemed like such a drastic thing to do-cutting off your nose to spite your face. I had never heard about schools being closed to prevent integration. But when I went to Little Rock to do some interviews, everyone I talked to had much more to say about 1958-59, the year when the schools were closed. I actually didn’t start out to write about the “lost year.” I was planning to write a book set during 1957-58 when the Little Rock Nine were integrating Central High School. After this discovery, Marlee must first decide whether she wishes to remain in contact with Liz-then the two courageous girls face violence and the disapproval of their families as they fight for their friendship.īookPage spoke with author Levine about her sensitive and compelling historical novel.ĭuring your research about the “lost year,” what surprised you the most? Turns out Liz is actually African American, and she was passing as white. Liz helps Marlee gain the confidence to give a speech in class, but on the day of the presentation, Marlee learns that Liz has withdrawn from school. In the story, the painfully shy 12-year-old Marlee becomes friends with Liz, an outgoing new girl at her middle school. Kristin Levine’s novel The Lions of Little Rock is about an unlikely friendship that develops during this tumultuous period of history. In 1958, the Arkansas governor closed the Little Rock public high schools in order to prevent integration, leaving students and teachers in limbo and the city divided. Many people are familiar with the 1957 Central High Crisis-when nine African-American students integrated the Little Rock public high school in the face of segregationist threats and protests-but less famous is the “lost year,” which happened the year after the Crisis.
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