May's Book Pick is the National Book Award winner and Newbery Honor book, BROWN GIRL DREAMING, by Jacqueline Woodson, a memoir in verse.
The author has roots in Ohio, in South Carolina, and then later in New York City. Her story tells of growing up in the 1960s and 70s, of learning the ways of the world and the wonder of storytelling.
In the most elegant yet accessible language, Woodson plants her narrative firmly in history: her place in the broader history of American race relations, as well as in the more personal history of her extended family. Both histories figure prominently in how she makes sense of her world and they provide a firm base for her to come into her own.
I'm in awe of the seamless way she weaves her way through her childhood, as she figures out her place in the past, in the present, and with hints of the future to come.
What do you think (or not) makes this such a memorable story?
--Lynn
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