A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

This was one of the first books that made me understand the depths possible in a rich reading life. My world felt very small when I was young, and Francie’s hunger for books, beauty, dignity and possibility felt, and still feels, like my own. My Gran gifted me this book and I return to it every few years because it reminds me that imagination can be a form of resilience, a way of growing beyond the boundaries of circumstance. If you’ve ever felt that insatiable curiosity, that deep longing for something larger than where you began, this book will meet you there.