"A Tree Grows In Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

Synopsis:The beloved American classic about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the century, Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a poignant and moving tale filled with compassion and cruelty, laughter and heartache, crowded with life and people and incident. The story of young, sensitive, and idealistic Francie Nolan and her bittersweet formative years in the slums of Williamsburg has enchanted and inspired millions of readers for more than sixty years. By turns overwhelming, sublime, heartbreaking, and uplifting, the daily experiences of the unforgettable Nolans are raw with honesty and tenderly threaded with family connectedness -- in a work of literary art that brilliantly captures a unique time and place as well as incredibly rich moments of universal experience.

My review: Quite simply, I lost track of how many times this book made me cry.  And I don't mean just tears in my eyes but full-on body-wracking sobs.  You should know that I am not typically emotional in that way.  I don't cry or get angry very much so my outpouring of grief surprised (and sometimes scared) me.  I had no idea this book would hit so close to home.  My family wasn't poor until after my parents divorced and we moved to Ontario.  So I can empathize with the rich/poor divide in society.  Particularly in school, I can empathize about the bullying from other kids and most definitely with Francie's being ostracized because of her smell.  I, too, am the older sister of a brother but the age difference is 2.5 years to Francie's 1 year.  I am the daughter of an alcoholic father.  And I, too, know what it's like growing up knowing that your mother loves your brother more than she loves you, even if she won't admit it.  Actions speak louder than words, as they say.

Mama went into ecstasies.  She said it was the prettiest present she had ever had.  She kissed Neeley three times.  Francie tried very hard not to be jealous because Mama made more fuss over Neeley's present than hers.

This was the line that made me cry the most in the beginning because every year I try to find a christmas present for my mother that will get me the reaction I've always wanted to get: that face-lighting-up-with-joy reaction that my brother always got.  I have yet to get it.

I had added this book to my TBR and then promptly forgot why.  I read a few bookish quotes from it online this year and decided to finally read it.  I'm so glad I did even though I never reread the synopsis and read it without any idea what it would be about.  I really enjoyed it, despite all the crying.  Time literally seemed to stand still while I was reading it (I'd look at the time expecting hours and hours to have gone by and it would barely have been one) and I think it might have been because of how time flies in the book, moving from one scene or moment to the next.  I never felt that the book dragged on.  And it's another one of those books that makes me grateful for what I have.  I'm thankful for the happy ending for Francie's mother and the availability of possibilities for Neeley and Francie.  This book left me with hope for my own future.

Read on,

Paula