A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith shows up on lists of modern, minor classics.  While it doesn’t have the stature of To Kill a Mockingbird or Animal Farm, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn has stood the test of time and is still relevant reading for mature young adults.  I have finally picked it up, and I’m very glad that I did, since it spoke to my need to read light fiction on hot summer nights.  You won’t find this book as “light” as I did, as it is a book you will find both in YA and adult sections of the library, but I think you will be happy you picked it up. 

The novel is the story of so many of our ancestors, Irish and German Americans growing up in Brooklyn at the turn of the twentieth century.  While not plot heavy (you won’t find a lot of “action” scenes), you will find a fascinating snapshot of working class America at the end of its age of innocence before the first World War.  The story follows one family as the children grow up through their poverty to attain the American Dream and features strong characterizations of all members of the family.  

I particularly liked this book because my own German Irish ancestors lived in Brooklyn.  My great grandmother came from Ireland with her cousin when she was just 16 years old.  She ended up owning a small grocery store in Brooklyn and met my great grandfather, a German American who worked on the construction of the Empire State Building.  

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is definitely a “must read” for sophisticated readers at some point in their reading lives.