Item: Brown Girls
Rating: 4.00
Author: quirkycat

by Daphne Palasi Andreades

‘Brown Girls flows like a late night FM-radio dedication to the crew, the block, and the mission. This book’s a gift’ Paul Beatty, author of The Sellout ‘An ode to girlhood’ Raven Leilani, author of Luster

A fiercely poetic coming-of-age novel following a group of young women of colour in Queens, New York.

If you really want to know, we are the colour of 7-Eleven root beer. Colour of the charcoal pencil our sisters use to rim their eyes. Colour of peanut butter.

Brown Girls dives deep into the lives of a group of young women of colour growing up in Queens, New York. Here, streets echo with many languages, subways rumble above dollar stores and the briny scent of the ocean wafts in from Rockaway Beach. Here, girls like Nadira, Gabby, Naz, Trish, Angelique, and many others, struggle to reconcile their immigrant backgrounds with the American culture they come of age in. Here, they become friends for life. Or so they vow.

In this bold debut told in a uniquely lyrical voice, Daphne Palasi Andreades paints a stunning collective portrait of the journey from girlhood to adulthood, set against a backdrop of race, class, and marginalisation in America today. Brown Girls is an unforgettable love letter to women of colour everywhere from a daring new writer.

‘Joyous, bittersweet, hilarious … a coming of age story for us all’ Nikesh Shukla, author of Brown Baby

‘A song of celebration, of mourning, of rage, of fierce living’ Rowan Hisayo Buchanan, author of Starling Days

‘If you liked LUSTER try BROWN GIRLS’ Sunday Times Style

‘Attracting huge amounts of buzz … a lyrical, urgent voice’ ipaper, Ten best books to read in 2022

‘A cracker of a first novel’ Glamour

‘A sensation in the US’ Guardian

‘Transporting … not to be missed’ Stylist

‘A daring debut … fearless’ New York Times

SHORTLISTED FOR THE CENTRE FOR FICTION 2022 FIRST NOVEL PRIZE

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022 IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, GUARDIAN, INDEPENDENT, GLAMOUR, STYLIST, INEWS, SUNDAY TIMES STYLE, LITERARY FRICTION PODCAST AND MORE.

It's debut time! But seriously, there's nothing I love more than picking up a debut novel, especially if it is in one of my favorite genres. Written by Daphne Palasi Andreades, Brown Girls is one of those books that begs to be read.

New York is full of different cultures, as people worldwide come here to find a new place and path in life. Among those trying to reconcile their backgrounds with their future are girls such as Nadira, Gabby, Naz, Trish, and Angelique, just to name a few. There are hundreds of girls just like them.
Brown Girls celebrates their journey, turning it into a poetic adventure that any reader could resonate with.

I can see readers going one of two ways with Brown Girls: either they're going to love it or hate it. I fall into the former category. If you enjoy a novel that portrays lots of little moments in people's lives, this might just be the read for you.

Brown Girls is essentially a collection of vignettes featuring many characters, including those I mentioned above. They are short and sweet, bouncing from one to the next. Despite all of these transitions, the story is relatively easy to follow. It helps that Daphne Palasi Andreades stuck to a chronological storytelling format.

There is something so beautiful about the writing style of this book – it would not be an exaggeration to call it poetic or lyrical. It flows throughout the narrative, weaving in and out of each character's story. It's so compelling and wonderfully human, making it the perfect delivery system for the story of Brown Girls.

Thanks to Random House and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

Brown Girls

by Daphne Palasi Andreades

Reviewed by Quirky Cat on Mar 7, 2022

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