Brown Girl Dreaming

Speechless...which is hard for me to be. Woodson does an amazing job using words to bring pictures and smells right to your senses. This isn't just a page turner, but one in which you feel apart of the story every step of the way.

You become totally engaged in Jacqueline Woodson's life. This poetic journey from a young girl to an adult is moving and lets you experience the real-life characters as if they were your own family members.

Beautiful, lyrical and dynamic writing. A charming, alarming, enchanting, informative, instructional, joyous, sad, loving story of growing up years that were very different than my own. A learning experience for me and a great read.

Heard about the book after Lemony Snickett author faux pax. I didn't know it was "young adult" . I loved it and was moved by her story.
I've bought ten copies so far , and have given to all ages and genders. I love memoirs. They really happened. Not a long read, and each chapter is a wonderful slice of her life.
Could be a great read aloud.

Jacqueline Woodson has long been one of my favorite authors. As a white person I didn't have to grow up through the turmoil she did. I didn't understand a lot of the turmoil. I was sheltered. When we went camping I played with kids. There was no color. My parents saw fit to raise me to believe we are all created by God and are all the same. It wasn't until I moved from Indiana to Florida that I saw the true issues. I had been sheltered from the fact that our town (I grew up 20 miles out in the country) was very prejudiced. Jacqueline's autobiography, told through verse is a look into the life I knew nothing about. She faces and speaks of each hardship in life so eloquently. We get a glimpse through her eyes of what it was like growing up a "brown girl" during her childhood. This is a must read book. This is one I will not only recommend to my students, but will strongly suggest they read, no matter what their color. This is history, this is life, this is past and present. This is Beautiful.

I picked this book because of Jacqueline's last name,of course.It is not unusual to find our name in the Sports section of the paper but a rare find on the Book Page. Brown Girl Dreaming is my pick for our book club next month. Keep in touch,cousin. [email protected]

Oh, I loved this book so much......simply unbelievable words that require reading more than once. You feel her words.
I had to allow only one reading per day. Wanted to savor the experience of one who just tells the story. Doesn't understate but also doesn't add superficial drama. Wanted to cheer!

I was so taken with this story. Jacqueline took me to an honest place that broke so many of my prejudices and carried me to so many of my own memories...a book that can teach us something new and at the same time relate to our inner most thoughts is quite a triumph! I will be reading this to my students soon! Thank you for giving all brown children a voice!

I've always avoided stories in verse but this one was compelling and touching. I grew up in a different part of the country but share some of the same history. What a wonderful story about growth and self discovery!

I read all the Newbury winners and runners up and this was my favorite this year. Written in beautiful free verse it was a delightful memoir and also satisfied my new year's resolution to read more poetry! Jacqueline Woodson never disappoints!

Definitely didn't expect to love this book as much as I did. Verse usually isn't something I can read much of without getting frustrated. But the story was not lost. It was beautifully written. I highly recommend it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book written in verse and packing so much meaning into every page. Woodson is a very efficient writer who can say more in a few lines than some writers can in a chapter. You'll love her story.

Another brilliant piece from Jacqueline Woodson. So many of her earlier works woven through the beauty of these poems. Every teacher of writing can find inspiration for his or her students among these pages.