Children's Literature
Sharing my thoughts on some exceptional books...
Woodson, J. (2014). Brown girl dreaming. NY: Penguin. This is a memoir written in free verse about the life of Jacqueline Woodson. She begins by telling about her birth in Ohio during the 60s. Her father wanted to name her Jack, but her mother was against it and named her Jacqueline. When she turned one, her parents split, and her mother moved Jacqueline and her siblings south to Greenville, South Carolina. During this time in history, there was racial discrimination, but Jacqueline loved growing up and living with her grandparents. The memory of her father slowly faded and she begin to call her grandfather "daddy." She makes references to the experiences of being African American during this time, like walking downtown with her grandmother and being followed around in certain stores simply because they are colored. She also makes references to not really understanding but knowing that people were marching to make the world a better place. She tells about a neighbor Ms. Bell, who would hold meetings at her house for those who were marching. While growing up at her grandmother's she is raised as a Jehovah's Witness. She recounts learning the days of the week because five out of the seven days were for bible study and service at the Kingdom Hall. Her mother eventually moves the family to New York City looking for a better life. Jacqueline prefers the south because she feels that New York is "loud and strange" with "hot cement." Although she has struggled as a reader, she begins to write and feels a deep desire which she practices often in a composition book. Sometimes she writes something so amazing that others often think she didn't write it, but she did. Living in the north is a very different experience than living in the south. Although she misses her grandparents and living in the south, in New York she makes friends and her teacher validates her talent for writing. She soon enough discovers who she is and her purpose in life. There is an author's note at the end of the book in which Jacqueline discusses how she returned home and how her family members helped fill in some of the gaps in her memory. She reveals meeting up with her father again at the age of fourteen. Woodson does an amazing job at helping the reader walk in her shoes. She doesn't simply tell her experience but instead shows the reader through descriptive language. When she left Ohio for example, she says he father waved goodbye like he would to "guests leaving Sunday supper." You can feel the emotion when she says that Hope, Dell, and herself would run up to grandpa and "crawled him like a tree." There are many references to events in history like the marching, Martin Luther King Jr., and the Black Panthers. Other great books to read: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia, and Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon
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Nora RuizI'm a stay-at-home mom who has three daughters ages 7, 4, and 1. I like spending time with family and enjoying a cup of coffee with sweet bread! Assignments:Textbook #2
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