Reviews with content warning for Abortion - Brown Girls

As a brown girl from Queens this book read as both a love letter to my childhood as well as a reflection of the struggles and the ups and downs of being a brown girl from Queens. I loved the writing and the use of “us” as the character surprisingly pulled me even further into the experiences I shared and had not yet shared as a brown girl.

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readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A moving and powerful narrative about the vast, complex and multitudinous experiences of brown girls from Queens, NY. The first person plural narrative works well to convey the many voices of these women and express their differences, while still illustrating their sisterhood and solidarity. The writing is beautiful, nostalgic, and touched something deep inside me in a way I hadn't been expecting. A brilliant, striking debut and one that I'd highly recommend.

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thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

a surprisingly fast read, brown girls is an important illustration and exploration of the titular subject in all their aspects: their complex identity, family, the immigrant experience, societal pressure, discrimination in many aspects including their race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.

i particularly enjoy the portrayal of how said life struggles never truly end, there's always another hurdle to jump thru whether it be in terms of schooling, career, romance or family life. it's also satisfying seeing the narrator learns more abt herself and slowly comes to terms w/ her identity and place in the world after reconnecting w/ her motherland, and for the most part 'wake up' from internalized racism & colorism and unconscious self-doubt and hatred.

palasi andreades nuancedly delves into many relevant topics w/in the lives of WOC, esp in relations to whiteness, and the ebb and flow of friendship thru time is realistic. overall, i enjoy this book and hope to read more from the author.

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lwalla01's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I wasn’t sold on this book when it picked it up. I’m not entirely sure why. I think part of it has to do with the fact I’ve been ranking a lot of books high. And the other part of it had to do with the fact I want to read longer not shorter books. Despite all of my personal biases going into this book - it blew me away. I’m not sure how the author managed to craft such a deep, rich book that makes the reader feel connected to the characters without actually having specific characters or a narrative to follow. This book was unlike any other that I’ve read to date. The writing flows almost in verse. And the protagonist is “brown girls.” The author did wonders by allowing “brown girls” to be both specific and universal. It was a feat that I don’t think many authors could pull off.

I was also impressed with the way this fictional narrative told a story of living in the United States as a child of immigrants. I think the experience is very unique, and the author did a great job of showing how one can be both colonized & colonizer at the same time. It’s a nuance that’s often lost in conversation; so I was pleasantly surprised to see it come up in this book. There’s a lot of good things in these 200 pages.

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caitlyn_irene's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Amazing read! A beautiful contemplation on race, womanhood, motherhood, family, gender, queerness, place, home, and community through the lens of girls, women, and people of color. I couldn't stop reading, and now I really wish I had slowed down. This gorgeous poetic prose deserved to be absorbed in many more sittings than I gave it, but it was just too good.

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sakisreads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

‘Brown Girls’ was a recommendation I found on the Guardian’s 2022 reading list, and wow it did not disappoint! We follow the adventures and lives of people living in ‘the dregs of Queens’, whose parents have migrated from a range of different countries. As people of colour (POC), who feel as though they are living the ‘American dream’, the ‘brown girls’ in this book navigate through childhood, adolescence and adulthood with so many different challenges (e.g. pressure from families, racism from a young age, working through their sexual orientation and gender identity, incarceration of family members just to name a few). There were so many parts of the book that hit home and brought forward some big feelings 😳 I would highly recommend this book to anyone; it’s a beautiful, bittersweet way in which to see a snapshot of the issues POC can face in America and elsewhere. I couldn’t thank the author enough for giving us such an amazing book 👏🏼 I think I’ll come back to read it again, too! ❤️

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