I never read many classics as a kid. I think I read Of Mice and Men and I know I read The Outsiders (is that considered a “classic?”) but other than that…Northport schools didn’t really push them. So when it was suggested I read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn I kinda balked. In all honesty, I haven’t read a book in years and the idea of reading about the poor Irish in Shantytown Brooklyn at the turn of the century didn’t sound appealing in the slightest. But I was anxious to cross the first thing off my list, so to the library I went with little expectation. Well…color me WRONG! I couldn’t get enough of the Nolan family and their struggles. June asked me what it was about and if I was enjoying it and I replied with an enthusiastic “It’s about absolutely nothing and I LOVE it!” Francie Nolan became my best friend over the next 498 pages and I couldn’t put it down. Betty Smith finds a way to draw the reader in to this simpler yet punishing time when a couple cents could buy a loaf of day old bread and children were sent to work at fourteen to contribute to the household. It was an education in what it meant to be dirt poor, and struggle for the mere necessities of life. Contrasting this with the consumer driven world we live in today was eye-opening. Could I have lived during that time? Could I have stepped up and sacrificed for my family as Katie did? Doubtful. I go wild if I forget my cellphone when I leave the house. God bless those determined Brooklynites.
I was hoping this list would grow organically and would lead to more ideas as I accomplished each “task” and I must admit…I’m now interested in reading more of the “required reading” that I missed in school. Leave a comment with some suggestions, but please no War and Peace. I just don’t see it happening 🙂
Recommended by Judy Krassner