Overcoming Obstacles In The Lions Of Little Rock By Kristin Levine

462 Words2 Pages

The Lions of Little Rock is an outstanding historical fiction novel about overcoming obstacles and unlikely friendships taking place in Little Rock, Arkansas, during segregation. The character development of all the characters is clearly visible, leaving the reader loving even the antagonists. In The Lions of Little Rock Written by: Kristin Levine, the main character, Marlee barely talks to anyone at the beginning of the book. However, with the help of her friend Liz, she finds her voice little by little; first to her friends, then her teachers, after her bullies and then the whole neighborhood. But when she loses her friend and wants her back, this is when she has to use her voice the most. At that point, she does whatever she can to get her back. Another …show more content…

When she meets Marlee, she makes it her goal in life to get her to talk, starting with a history presentation. After all her attempts, she does not get to see her hard work pay off, for she is caught being who she really is: colored. Keep in mind this book takes place in 1958, where segregation is still in effect. After this, she does not lose her voice, but adds to it. She snaps at everyone in her new school when they talk about her ‘little stunt’ and is scared of her life and Marlee’s. When Marlee refuses to leave her alone and helps her with her temper, Liz decides to fight to save their friendship as well. However, a book can't be all about friendship, it needs to have antagonists too. JT is the football jock and popular kid at Marlee’s school. He also is her crush at the beginning of the book. He uses this knowledge to sweet-talk Marlee into doing his math homework for him. His brother, Red, and his father are segregationists who believe the colored don’t belong as anything but servants, so JT believes this too. So you can imagine his shock when he found out about Liz’s