Brown Girl Dreaming
by Jacqueline Woodson
13 jurisdictions · Banned 2020-2025 · Published
Brown Girl Dreaming is Jacqueline Woodson's 2014 National Book Award-winning verse memoir of her childhood between South Carolina and New York, banned or restricted in 13+ U.S. jurisdictions.
Why it was banned
The book has been challenged in Florida districts under broad "divisive content" interpretations. Woodson is one of the most-decorated Black children's authors in American history; her status has made her books regular targets in coordinated banning efforts.
Cited reasons
- racial content
- EDI content claim
Primary states
Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas
Why it matters
Brown Girl Dreaming won the 2014 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the Coretta Scott King Award, and the Newbery Honor. Woodson was named the Library of Congress's National Ambassador for Young People's Literature in 2018. Her verse memoir is one of the most-taught works of contemporary children's literature and is regularly named on lists of the most important books of the twenty-first century.
Themes
- memoir in verse
- civil rights era childhood
- Black girlhood
Awards
- National Book Award for Young People's Literature (2014)
- Coretta Scott King Award
- Newbery Honor
Where to buy
The Ledger recommends Black-owned booksellers. Each stocks this title or can order it.
- MahoganyBooksNational Harbor, Maryland · Founded
Independent bookstore specializing in books written for, by, and about people of the African diaspora.
- Marcus BooksOakland, California · Founded
The oldest independent Black-owned bookstore in the United States, named for political activist Marcus Garvey.
- Loyalty BookstoreWashington, D.C. · Founded
Black, queer, and woman-owned bookstore with locations in Washington, D.C. and Silver Spring, Maryland.
- Harriett's BookshopPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania · Founded
Named for Harriet Tubman, focusing on women authors, artists, and activists.
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Books in the catalog that share themes with this one.
Documented by The Ledger. A record of what Black America built and what was taken.
Book cover via Open Library. Editorial use under fair use.