The Voices of Silence

Readers get a bitter taste of life under Communist rule in this novel set in Romania near the end of Ceausescu's reign. Thirteen-year-old Flora's endurance of long lines, cold quarters and constant, gnawing hunger is shared by all of her classmates except for the new boy, Daniel, who arrives at school wearing American jeans and carrying a lunch box filled with good food (""Fancy having real meat in your sandwich,"" says an envious Flora). Despite her best friend Alys's warning to stay clear of the stranger, Flora cannot help being flattered by Daniel's friendly overtures and generosity. When she overhears her father's plans to defect, Flora, overwhelmed by fear and resentment, turns to Daniel, not knowing his father ranks high in the secret police. Her tragic mistake nearly leads to her father's capture-which Flora and Alys avert with heroic action-but does force her father to go into hiding and places them all under surveillance. Mooney's (The Stove Haunting) drama tensely portrays the gray existence of a suppressed population and evokes the undercurrent of anger that eventually explodes into revolution. As the author clearly intends, Flora's daily deprivations and her lessons in trust and betrayal will instill in readers a greater appreciation of their own freedoms. Ages 8-12. (Apr.)