A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN, by author, Betty Smith, recommended by book lover, Susan Cebelinski

Author / Writer / Book Lover - which are you?

SC ~ I am a book lover who loves to write.  I have many novels written in my head. 

Title of Fiction book and year published ~  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn,  published 1943, a classic. 

Author ~ Betty Smith     Type of book ~ Fictional novel. 

What is it about this book that pulled you in?

SC ~ I was pulled into this book first of all, because my mother had a copy of the book and recommended it to me when I was about 12 years old.  The main character is Neely, an 11 year old girl living in a tenement in New York.  I immediately connected with the character, even though our lives were very different, because we were close to the same age.  I think I also connected with Neely because of how she saw her living situation, and her view point on her parents and family from the eyes of an 11 year old.   However, I have read this book about 4-5 times at various ages and have connected with different characters as I have aged, such as Neely’s mother, Katie, when I was raising children.   So every time I read this book, I saw something new and different.  That is why I love the story so much.  It has such depth and meaning about the human condition, relationships, and reactions to situations they are powerless to change. 

Is there a relationship in the story that resonated with you?

SC ~ Yes, the relationship between Neely and her father, Johnny, who was an alcoholic, resonated with me deeply.   His behaviors were so destructive to the family, but Neely only saw the wonderful side of her father.  I have always had a very good relationship with my father, and put him on a pedestal.  As I have aged, I was able to see some of his humanness, but it never tainted how much I loved and respected my father.  I think this was similar to how Neely saw her father. 

Do you think that relationship was portrayed realistically?

SC ~ Yes I do think the relationship was realistic.  Alcoholism is a complex disease, if you subscribe to the philosophy that it is a disease.  I often think that people on the outside of  such situations  oversimplify the relationships and the deep connectedness of children  to their parents.  I used to work in child protection for a county and this book taught me not to overlook the parent/child relationship in alcoholic families.  It was never easy for me to remove children from homes or to make a permanent plan to keep children from alcoholic parents based on my awareness of the deep connectedness in those relationships.  Betty Smith did a wonderful job of demonstrating how much Neely loved her father Johnny yet showed how much his abuse of alcohol hurt other family members.  When I was 12 years old, I knew nothing of these things.  

Anything else you want to tell us about the book without giving away too much of the plot?

SC ~ When I read the book, Orphan Train, I thought about this book, though the trains had stopped running before  this  book was written, it brings to life the poverty and struggles of living in tenements in New York.  This book touches on many more issues than the ones I have described.  The extended families and other characters are well developed and give depth to this story. 

JHA ~ Thanks so much, Susan, for taking the time to recommend a great classic to us! 

Attention readers ~ Have YOU read this book?  If so, tell us what YOU thought of it!

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