Killing Miss Kitty and Other Sins - by Marion Dane Bauer (Paperback)

About the Book

The time is 1950. The place is a small town in the Midwest. The girl is Claire, and she has a new black friend. But in an all-white town, how open can the girls be about their friendship?
Now Claire faces being the "new girl" in school. A year later, she is confronting betrayal . . . and sin. Finally, she is fifteen and in love. But it is not a love that can be spoken of, least of all by Claire.
In five interrelated stories, Claire grows into a young woman, learning about racism, sex, and love along the way. Most of all, she learns about truth.

Book Synopsis

The time is 1950. The place is a small town in the Midwest. The girl is Claire, and she has a new black friend. But in an all-white town, how open can the girls be about their friendship?
Now Claire faces being the "new girl" in school. A year later, she is confronting betrayal . . . and sin. Finally, she is fifteen and in love. But it is not a love that can be spoken of, least of all by Claire.
In five interrelated stories, Claire grows into a young woman, learning about racism, sex, and love along the way. Most of all, she learns about truth.

Review Quotes

"Thought-provoking and beautifully literary." School Library Journal

"[Readers] will find a sympathetic character in Claire, whose inability to acknowledge her heart's truth will resonate with questioning teens." Booklist, ALA

"These autobiographical tales are tinged with nostalgia and a sense of a world long gone." Kirkus Reviews

"The stories resonate with an emotional clarity and force that will speak to young readers across the years." Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books --