A Tree Grows in Brooklyn discussion

After reading this entire thing in eight hours, I would like to say that this is the most well written book about nothing that I have ever read. :D Except, I hated Francie's name. This reminded me of To Kill a Mockingbird or even The Catcher in the Rye... a little. What'd you think?

Interesting comparisons. Not the two books I would have picked.

I enjoyed this book, but found the love story toward the end a little rushed and not as convincing as it could have been. Still a brilliant book, though. :)

I dunno. I guess the two named are also coming of age books, so in that sense they're alike. But Francie is a very different sort of person than tough little Scout or clueless Holden.

I read this book in 6th grade, as my grandmother gave it to me for my birthday. I still have the copy and is showing a lot of wear from being read so many times. I loved the way it was written. You could really see the action and scenery. Francie was a very strong girl, who had to grow up way to fast. I can relate with her relationship with her father, as my grandfather was much the same where the drink was concerned, although he had a steady job. I have now got two copies of the book and have handed one down to my grand daughters to read. Hope they enjoy it as much as I did at their ages.

I think you can certainly make some comparisons. There is a loss of innocence in both ATGIB and TKAM as the main characters have to come to grips with some gritty realities. I love both books as well as Betty Smith's other book - "Joy in the Morning."

joy in the mornning is another book i really enjoyed. it was made into a movie and i think richard chamberlain
played the male lead. i remember crying in parts as i watched it.

Janie wrote: "Except, I hated Francie's name."
Ah, but as we learn (a bit awkwardly, I'll admit), her name was REALLY "Mary," after Grandma Mary Rommely.

This is one of my favorite books. I'm glad to see it being discussed here.

Janie wrote: "It's a movie???

and

What would you compare it to?"

The movie is an old black and white. It's very good but it is very very different from the book.

I've read the book a few times, insightful and well written.

Yes, the movie was made in 1945 by Elia Kazan, the fellow who directed ON THE WATERFRONT with Eve Marie Saint and Marlon Brando. Dorothy McGuire starred in the A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN

Janie, the doll is mentioned again. At the end of the book, Francie is packing her possessions, including "[t]he doll named Mary and the pretty little box which had once held ten gilded pennies." Top of p. 426 in my paperback.

Janie - I think that was part of the point, though. The rich people in the book had no clue what it was like to be poor - they were in their own world filled with their own self-importance.

I had to read this years ago in 10th grade English Lit. I never finished the book - just couldn't get into it. My book club just finished it a few weeks ago. Years have made me appreciate this lovely book. Our discussion was excellent as well. Smith provided lots of depth in characters and so much attention to relationship building. Loved it.

Patrice - so funny! So true!

I think I said this on another thread, but I'd love to see Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood) play Francie. Did you know there's a musical version for the stage? And Francie sings a lovely song called "Growing Pains."

My favorite book of all time. I must have read it a dozen times, the first time when I was a child. I *was* Francie Nolan, just a Southern version of her. My parents were so much like hers, our financial situation so much like hers, my love of books so much like hers...this is one book that changed my world view. I have a copy of the movie and even though it's different I watch it when I'm depressed and I cry like a baby every time. Great therapy!

You probably will all hate me for this, but I thought this book was just average. I didn't hate it, but it seemed like every other coming of age book I have ever read.

Everyone had their own opinions on books... What are some of the "coming of age" stories you liked?

I don't really have a favorite... I like them all.

Janie wrote: "Jeffrey wrote: "You probably will all hate me for this, but I thought this book was just average. I didn't hate it, but it seemed like every other coming of age book I have ever read."

No I don't ..."

Janie, I'm sorry that academia is getting in the way of your appreciation of this story. It's hard to put a finger on why so many people love this book and why it appeals to so many different kinds of people. I think for me, the story is written in a very straight forward manner without any 'stuff' getting in the way. She just tells what Brooklyn was like from the viewpoint of Francie who is wise beyond her years. We don't have to work very hard to see the life she leads as it is told in very rich and vivid detail. Francie's imagination and choice to step out of her hard life and into books as a refuge are choices that many of us on Goodreads share with each other on a daily basis.

I think the biggest fans of this book are like Francie herself: avid readers who aspire to write.

This is my favorite book of all time,yet I can not honestly say why.
My home life as a child did not mirror Francie's in any way,yet it spoke to me.
Her courage and that of her mother,in addition to the pleasure they took in little things brought me joy and made me wish I had their spirit.

I first heard of this book when reading of someone walking along Omaha Beach after the battle and finding the body of a soldier who had been reading it as his life ebbed away.

I have read this book several times during my life, beginning when I was a teenager. I think about this book all the time. I remember so many details from teh book - it is so well written and realistic. When I have had to pinch pennies, I think about making a star bank. We will be reviewing this at my library's book discussion group this summer.

One of my most favorites. I go back to it every few years.

loved this book!!!

I reread it twice a year--Its one of my favorites!! I read it the summer when I was 10, and it gets better each year.

I think I have read this over 100 times. First time I was about 9, now I'm in my 50's. It will always be my favorite book.

Fran wrote: "I think I have read this over 100 times. First time I was about 9, now I'm in my 50's. It will always be my favorite book."

I guess it helps that you have the same name as the protagonist.

I remember seeing a saying that went something like this: "It's strange because sometimes, I read a book and I think I am the people in the book" It is so true, and in this book I became Katie. I was able to feel and understand her motherly sacrifice, determination, and will power. The characters were all strong and well developed. I just wish I would have found this treasure sooner.

I just loved this book. Betty Smith writes what it must have been like in the early 1900s. in New York. Francie is the main character. starting out around 11 or 12. and going up to about 19. it was a rough life for this family. { the movie is very good too} one of my favorite books. will probably read again.

I was disappointed - in fact I nearly abandoned it a third of the way through. It was a paler version of Angela's Ashes - missing the authenticity of an autobiographical account and the gentle self deprecating Irish humour that was such a foil to the privations and hardships in Frank McCourt's memoir.

I'm guessing it's a book that appeals more to American readers?

actually I loved both A tree Grows in Brooklyn and Angela's Ashes. Frank McCourt wrote an excellent book on his childhood in Ireland so far I have read Angela's Ashes twice.

I loved both books as well.

I love Sissy! I intimately relate to Francie in many ways (reading!), but Sissy was a blast. She gave the kids something no one else could.

i felt bad for sissy when she was told not to come around. and later on happy when she was brought back into the family. she never should have been told to not come around. she has such a good heart and always means so well.

No kidding. Kids need that all-enveloping love. Their mom was fantastic, but Sissy was able to give them the time they needed someone.

Yes, it was really sad to see her banned. All for some silly thing! I thought it was hysterical.

Still my favorite book. Read it in High School, and then again years later. So full of characters, and I too identified with Francie the first time I read it, but then identified with her mother when I read it years later.

I read this book seven times in a row when I was in grade school and had it practically memorized. I still remember whole incidents and passages from it decades later. I've always been aware of the fact that it helped fuel my desire to move to New York City at the earliest possible moment but only as I write this post do I realize that it also introduced me to the idea of social and cultural history, an important component of my work as an architectural historian.

Lori wrote: "actually I loved both A tree Grows in Brooklyn and Angela's Ashes. Frank McCourt wrote an excellent book on his childhood in Ireland so far I have read Angela's Ashes twice."

I absolutely loved :A Tree Grows in Brooklyn." Some books remain in your heart forever and this is one of them.

I finally got my husband to read this - wouldn't have been his choice - and he loved it!

I read this book probably way before I was old enough to understand the entire plot, but I loved it. When I saw the movie it just pulled it all together for me. Along with To Kill a Mockingbird, it ranks as one of my all time favorites.

I plan to have this as my Book Group's book for October. Surprisingly, I have never read it before. I did recently listen to it on CD. I think that sometimes makes a dull or what is perceived to be dull a better more palatable story? Not only that but I can sew and read at the same time! YAY me! How often can we really accomplish two things at once these days?

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt and Glass Houses by Jeanette Walls were amazing books about being raised poor. A tree grows in brooklyn on the other hand was a mess of rambled thoughts with no message at all. I fell like I have wasted my time.

I realized my other comments did not really pay attention to the book quite as much in detail. So-

I grew up, in Pennsylvania and my parents were respectively the same nationalities as were Francie's parents. The stubborn hardworking, albeit slight martyr syndrome of Mom, who was in fact even a cleaning lady- and the Dad, socially jovial semi-functional alcoholic, who had the DT's from his withdrawal efforts, on a regular basis, oddly, he did die young, also.
Perhaps it was more real to me for the reasons that I could understand the animosity between their nationalities? Unlike Francie's parents who did not fight as openly in front of their children.
I also could picture the tenements that Francie described having been to NYC. Of course, I agree, every city has the poor rundown areas. But I felt as if having come from the North, and having the exact nationalities as Francie, I felt an otherwise, unexplainable kinship to her. Oh- and I was raised Catholic too....but my real first name is not Mary!
I am not saying poor me, but the book took on a more personal note than many others may find.

I was introduced to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn when I was a child, via the black and white movie. Though I've always loved to read I was unaware back then that the movie was based on a book. It was always one of my favorite movies and whenever I would see it on the TV schedule I would watch it. I have finally read the book and was not disappointed. It was like meeting an old friend and enjoying shared memories. The character's are strong and the author is unafraid to show their flaws as well as their strengths. Katie was particularly honest with herself and other's about who she was and how she wished she could be more. I found the book representational of the American immigrant experience of the time period. These were people were willing to work hard for a better life, and though disappointed that achieving that life may have been harder than expected, embraced the opportunity to do so. They understood and appreciated that a "free education" available to all would be their road to elevating themselves. They eschewed charity preferring to dig deeper into themselves and make their own way. But the author was not afraid to touch upon many of the human flaws and failings we still see in today's society. They may not have been talked about back then but they certainly existed. I think my favorite line in the book was the one where Francie and Nealy are discussing their baby sister's future and they decide that she would never have the hard times they had......nor the fun! It certainly rings true for me.

Lucy wrote: "I was introduced to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn when I was a child, via the black and white movie. Though I've always loved to read I was unaware back then that the movie was based on a book. It was..."

Funny. To me, the movie was disappointing because it ended when Francie was so young, and my favorite part of the book is when she begins to work at the newspaper, ending up actually preferring it to school.

That was a wonderful addition to the story I already knew but remember, not having read the book first all I knew was what had been translated to the movie. I loved the book and ALL the parts that had been cut out of the movie. It was very nice to see how Francie made her own way in the world and I have to admit that I was always a little sad the movie ended when it did, not knowing where her life took her. Also, the movie never touched on her romantic life and that was such a wonderful part of the book. Had I read the book first I think I would have been disappointed in the movie as well. And you have to remember that I was a child, probably not more than 10 or 11 when I first saw the movie.

I loved this book. It is one of my favorites. It is written so well I can picture myself there. I rooted for francie. she was so hardworking and so hoping to get a good education. she had a lot of disappointment in her life. i admired how she kept trying and working for what she wanted. I am sure i will read this again. the movie is good too!!{ the 1940s version}