brown girl dreaming

Brown Girl Dreaming 

by Jacqueline Woodson

I really enjoyed this book! Jacqueline Woodson tells her childhood stories through free verse. It's so motivating and so inspirational. From the very beginning, brown girl dreaming perfectly captures the complicated beauty and strength and complexity of familial ties and the stories that come along with them. My absolute favorite part of reading this was feeling the determination of this young girl. This was a true reminder that we can achieve our childhood dreams. We all have the ability to follow our dreams to the best of our abilities despite our age, despite any family objections, and despite any perceived unlikeliness, our dreams are worth chasing. 

I also love that these childhood experiences and these stories are filled with so much perspective. I think that we all have our own way of viewing the world because we're all shaped by our own personal stories and experiences but there are similarities that bring us together and help us relate with complete strangers. Even though I wasn't a young girl growing up in Greenville, South Carolina in 1963 or in Bushwick in 1969, these stories still resonate with me. 

Just like in life, there are moments throughout her childhood that make us think our personal experiences and relationships with family, love, doubt, friendships, music, community/neighborhoods, birth, death, and so much more. It really was a great read. 

Recommended for

• all brown girls ready to chase a dream 
• all readers, especially middle schoolers
• anyone looking for stories about moving 
• City girls
• Southern girls
• people who love to write
•  People who believe in themselves, are learning to believe in themselves, want to learn how to believe in themselves. 
• Anyone who is a big fan of reading stories about people living through history/historical moments
• anyone who has ever thought that they were a little different but believed in themselves anyway

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Favorite Parts & Quotes 

"You'll face in your life someday,
my mother will tell us
over and over again.
A moment when you walk into a room and 
no one there is like you." 


"Even the silence
has a story to tell you.
Just listen. Listen."


"The revolution is always going to be happening.
I want to write this down, that the revolution is like
a merry go round, history is always being made somewhere. 
And maybe for a short time,
we're apart of that history. And then the ride stops
and our turn is over[...]
My name is Jacqueline Woodson
and I am ready for the ride."


"I believe in one day and someday and this
perfect moment called Now."

 
"When there are many worlds, love can wrap itself 
around you, say, Don't cry. Say, You are as good as anyone
Say, Keep remembering me. And you know, even as the world explodes
around you--that you are loved..." 

-Jacqueline Woodson

Thank you, Jacqueline Woodson, for your beautiful words!