WOW!!! How did I miss this book for so long?
I can tell you how.
Once upon a time — less than two years ago really — I visited my grandparents and came home with two boxes full of books. I even wrote a blogpost about it, but I’m not going to give you the link to that one because the whole thing is far from my best and I don’t know what I was thinking when I drew my graphics.
Since bringing those boxes home I’ve done my best to read a bunch of those books but I have not been able to read all of them.
Jump foreword to a couple months ago, I was in charge of a weeklong unit-study/”camp” for my younger siblings. The theme of the camp was books and it was absolutely fantastic. One day during that week, I read my siblings a book about the Little Free Libraries and how the project began. Then we took a walk to a nearby neighborhood to fill one of the Little Free Libraries.
Because many of the books in the box from my grandma were ones that my grandma was trying to get rid of, my family and I figured it would be fine to take some of them to the Little Free Library a short distance away from our house. Don’t worry Grandma, we made sure to not give away the ones we promised to return to you. 😉
We put the books into the little box, walked home, and finished our wonderful week of books and such things.
As the weeks went by I started seeing Brown Girl Dreaming suggested on Goodreads. I saw the cover again on Pinterest and a couple other places. Each time, I fleetingly marveled over the bright and cheery cover. I read the description and thought it sounded like a book I would love to read.
Through a friend, I heard about the book again, and then things clicked into place. I suddenly remembered that this book was one of the ones I had put into the Little Free Library.
I suddenly had a mission to carry out. I marched back to the box of books, hoping the entire time that my book was still there.
A few houses away from the little library and I could see a husband and wife sorting through the various books in search of something they wanted.
My heart skipped a couple beats as I saw, I kid you not, in slow motion, the husband holding up Brown Girl Dreaming and asking his wife if she wanted to take it home. I stopped in my tracks, terrified that I had come all this way (not exactly that far, but you know what I mean) and I was about to watch the book I had come for be snatched away from me.
Miraculously, the woman refused the book and took another one with a far less beautiful cover and the couple went on their way.
I hurried up to the wooden box and snatched the book back. On my way home, book in hand, I texted a picture to my mom, excitedly telling her that I had retrieved my book. I knew at that moment that this book and I would be good friends.
As for my opinion of this book?
Absolutely delightful! A+ for Jacqueline Woodson.
The unique pairing of a true account from the author’s childhood and poetic writing was sweet and tantalizing. I truly couldn’t put this book down. It was a page turner and a quick read because of being written in verse.
It had so many beautiful lines that made me stop, go back, and read the section again.
The story is beautiful, and it makes it all even better knowing that it is based on truth. When I finished I set the book down and basically just sat there for a minute, absorbing the loveliness of the whole thing.
I would recommend this book to anyone who appreciates beautiful writing and who wants a quick read. This middle grade book is perfect for young readers looking for a unique biography. Sometimes biographies and memoirs can seem boarding or daunting to young readers so this is a great choice for children because of the short time it can be read in.
If you have read Brown Girl Dreaming, let me know what you thought!
