Question

Write a 150 word summary of what the book Stella by Starlight is about.

Answer 1

Stella by Starlight tells the story of an 11-year-old African-American girl living in the small town of Bumblebee, North Carolina in 1932. Stella comes from a hard-working family, whose church congregation and the wider community are shaken after the Klu Klux Klan reemerges in their community during the Great Depression. The novel follows Stella over the course of several months as she struggles to maintain hope and to pursue her dreams of becoming a journalist amidst the complex and oppressive world in which she lives.

Answer 2

It's 1932 in Bumblebee, North Carolina; everything is segregated, the KKK is active, and black men are strongly discouraged from registering to vote - Jim Crow is in full effect. (The scene where Stella's father and two other men go to register to vote would be a swift and effective replacement for the relevant section in many U.S. History textbooks.) Stella deals with the usual struggles of a girl her age, such as schoolwork and chores, but she also deals with entrenched racism that threatens her family and friends. Her community comes together to offer support, such as when the Spencer family's house is torched by the KKK (Mr. Spencer was one of the men who registered to vote, along with Stella's father), or when Stella's friend Tony is beaten up by two white men in the town square. Throughout, Stella works out her thoughts and feelings in writing, both for school assignments and in her journal, and later, in her very own newspaper, Stella's Star-Sentinel. Near the end of the book, she saves the life of Paulette, daughter of Dr. Packard, who refused to treat Stella's mother for a snakebite. The girls come to understand each other a little better, and Paulette isn't the only good white person in the novel - but the bad ones are truly awful.

Hope this helps :))