Recently I read Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Jacqueline does a great job telling her story while making it interesting to read. This book will not disappoint.
Jacqueline Woodson was born in Columbus, Ohio. Her father, wanting to name her Jack after himself, suggested Jackie. Her mother, concerned that someone simply drop the ‘ie’ one day, suggested Jacqueline.
As a child, Jacqueline loved to make up stories. She had a natural talent for writing. She was creative as well as open-minded. But the one characteristic that I thought was the most prominent in Jacqueline was her persistence. It shows throughout the whole book as Jacqueline moves from Ohio to South Carolina, and then to New York, facing obstacles the whole way. The majority of the book takes place when Jacqueline was a child, and outlines her struggles with faith, race, family, and school.
Often Jacqueline would be compared to her older sister who excelled in school and could read with ease. Teachers sometimes referred to Jacqueline as ‘Odella’s sister,’ or ‘the other Woodson.’ But Jacqueline did not let that stop her. Soon, she was memorizing books. When Jacqueline told her family that she wanted to be a writer, they didn’t believe her, but she didn’t let them hold her down.
Although this was an amazing book, there were somethings I didn’t enjoy as much as others. The book was written in free-verse format, each chapter only a page or two long. This style of writing may be fun to look at, but in this case it was hard to follow at points. I often found myself going back to reread so I was able to comprehend passages.
Altogether, Brown Girl Dreaming was a very excellent and descriptive book. I would definitely rate it four out of five stars. If it had been easier to understand, I wouldn’t hesitate before giving it a five star rating. In this moving auto-biography, you can follow Jacqueline Woodson throughout her struggles and be with her during times of success. If you are looking for an inspirational page-turner, this book is for you.