“brown girl dreaming,” by Jacqueline Woodson
Puffin Books, New York, 2014, 349 pages, Grades 5-7.
Poetry is the music of literature and capable of expressing a multiple of emotions with very few words. Because of this, poetry can be harder to understand than fiction. While this is sometimes true, great poetry can express the depth of human experience with unsurpassing power and dignity.
Jacqueline Woodson is a renowned poet and writer and gives us a book of great poignancy, pain and beauty in her poetic autobiography entitled “brown girl dreaming.” While I can’t explain her lack of using capital letters in the title of this book, I can only encourage students to read this powerful and moving account of her life.
Both a Newbery Honor Book in 2015 and the winner of the 2015 Coretta Scott King Medal, “brown girl dreaming” tells the incredible life story of a young African American girl’s sometimes halting journey to becoming a world-class writer.
After her parents’ breakup, Jacqueline, with her brother and sister, returns to their grandparents’ home in South Carolina. In the South, the child listens to her grandparents tell the stories of their family. The stories have many different parts, some very painful and sad. Jacqueline learns about the history of black life in South Carolina. White racism and brutality are not left out of these stories, but there is usually hope as well. The loving support of the black community and the sense of belonging permeates the stories. As with most southern stories, there is always excellent food to share with everyone.
The three children are shielded by their grandparents with familial tenderness. They know that they are important, and that they are loved. The grandpa is especially close to Jacqueline as they work together in the garden in the back yard. But Jacqueline’s mother finally can’t endure the limitations of southern racism. She leaves the children with the grandparents and moves to New York City. After getting settled there, she moves the children north.
Now Jacqueline finds herself in a major city with none of the rhythms of a small, close, southern town. But new wonders begin to await her as her world begins to grow through the use of stories. She wants to be a writer and discovers that she has a growing ability to write poetry.
But the Sixties are also a time of great social change and the entire black community is affected. As she struggles to find her way in this swirl of change, Jacqueline realizes that her family and their southern heritage have formed her. She begins to see how this history can merge with the new world she is experiencing in New York. This becomes the mosaic of the “brown girl dreaming.”
This book is filled with beautiful writing and memorable images. We see American history changing through the experiences of this young girl’s life. Woodson’s writing is mesmerizing and readers will want to keep reading to see what happens in her life. Do her dreams come true? What does she learn about her family and the meaning of life? What role does love play in this marvelous book?
This is such a superb story that you won’t want to put it down. Though Woodson tells painful parts of American history, she also gives readers the hope that has long been present in our country. When you read this wonderful book, you will understand why it has won most of the important awards in the field of children’s literature.
I hope you check out this remarkable story of Jacqueline Woodson’s life. I found it fascinating, and think you will as well.
