Brown Girl Dreaming

Woodson, J. (2014). Brown girl dreaming. New York: Penguin.

About the Book

Jacqueline Woodson tells the story of her childhood from her perspective during the Civil Rights movement. She tells about her time in Ohio, South Carolina, and Brooklyn, New York. Throughout the book you learn that she always wanted to be a writer of poetry, even though learning how to read was a struggle for her. She has written the book in poetic verse, which provides a different twist on the Biography format which tells the story in a fast passed entertaining way.

Similarities and Differences to El Deafo, Love That Dog, Wonderstruck

What makes Brown Girl Dreaming different? -   Autobiography of the authors childhood experiences during the civil rights movements. Written in verse poetry.

     What are some similarities between the 4 books? - All four books have won multiple literary awards. The audience for all the books is the middle grades, 3-8. Each books premise is based on real world issues (realistic fiction)

What might appeal to a reader in “your library”?

A reader in my library might like: That it is about an African American girl. That the book is about the author’s childhood.  That it is written in verse, which is not very common for Biographies. That it takes place during the Civil Rights movement in the South. The Setting is in the South and New York City.

How would you sell these books?   Setting up a display on Biography’s and including this book and several others on people from many different backgrounds. Students studying American history of the Civil Rights movement could be encouraged to read a personal account from that time period. Making a display on book winners for the Coretta Scott King Honor Books in February for Black history month.