Stella by Starlight

“Do you know what would happen if they saw us?”

Stella whispers these words to JoJo as they watch Klansmen burn a cross on the far side of Kilkenny Pond. JoJo must keep still, as his movement on the dry fall leaves threatens to reveal their hiding place. Stella does not detail for her younger brother exactly what would happen if they got caught, which contributes to the ominous atmosphere and mood.

“Well, I don’t like writing much, and I’m not so very good at it, so I practice when nobody is around.”

During the nighttime meeting of neighbors Papa calls, Tony Hawkins and Stella sit together outside. When he shares his secret about running the track at night at the white high school, Stella tells him she sits outside nights to write. Tony does not understand why someone would do something so much like schoolwork; here, Stella explains her reasons why. Stella’s choice of words depicts her as both driven and humble.

“And even after all this time, my daddy’s still not allowed to treat white patients […] And Dr. Packard, the white doctor—he won’t even lay a hand on a black patient, even if they’re dyin’!”

As the neighbors meet about the cross-burning, Tony Hawkins compares his father’s medical practice to that of the “white doctor,” Dr. Packard. His words foreshadow Dr. Packard’s refusal to treat Mama’s snakebite later in the story. They also serve as dramatic