Book Review: The Women of Brewster Place

"The rattling moving van crept up Brewster like a huge green slug. It was flanked by a battered gypsy cab that also drove respectfully over the hidden patches of ice under the day old snow. It began to snow again, just as the small caravan reached the last building on the block." pg 7

The Women of Brewster Place, in one word is beautiful. The book is about 7 different women living in Brewster Place, a New York City housing project. Gloria Naylor crafts each woman's life as a short story and weaves the women's lives together through Brewster Place.

As a woman and a New Yorker I was touched by each woman's plight. Their very existence as a community is a struggle peppered with small successes. It is evident that Ms. Naylor grew up in New York City because she tastefully illustrates the hum, buzz, pace, and rhythm of the city. Their were moments where I felt like I too was a resident fighting, crying, and laughing along side these women in Brewster Place. This is their home for better and for worse, the place where they live, the women of Brewster Place.

This blog was created as part of the National Book Award Challenge. The Women of Brewster Place by Gloria Naylor was a 1983 National Book Award recipient.