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For the week of May 5, 2013 - May 11, 2013, we are reading Chapters 1- 14 of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Be sure to not give spoilers past these chapters.

I don't like it so far. I just felt this feeling of where is this story going? I do not like how the story started.I just do not feel any character investment so far. Does the story get better beyond the first two chapters?

Some people love it and some don't. I suppose it depends upon what one is looking for in a book read.

A quote from Chapter 1: "The one tree in Francie's yard was neither a pine nor a hemlock. It had pointed leaves which grew along green switches which radiated from the bough and made a tree which looked like a lot of opened green umbrellas. Some people called it the Tree of Heaven. No matter where its seed fell, it made a tree which struggled to reach the sky. It grew in boarded-up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps and it was the only tree that grew out of cement. It grew lushly, but only in the tenement districts."

These lines come from the first chapter of the novel, before the reader knows anything at all about Francie or the Nolan family. The author begins the book by describing the setting—and this specific tree—to emphasize the importance that place will play in the novel. The simile that compares the tree to opened green umbrellas is used a few times throughout the book, and describes the tree just as Francie would see it from an upstairs window, looking down. The quote also alerts the reader that class will be an important theme. Unlike almost all material things, the tree is something that poor people have that no rich person can ever attain. The tree grows "only in tenement districts," and the book will focus on the places where the trees grow, and the people who live close to it. The idea that poor people have something that no one else has suggests that there is something special about them. The author uses the Tree of Heaven as a symbol throughout the novel of the lives of poor people, and specifically, of Francie's growth from a child to a woman.
from Spark Notes

I love the language of this book. I can see the Brooklyn that Betty Smith describes as Francie goes about her day. The setting of the story takes quite a while for the author to set up, not much plot at first; but the writing is worthwhile to me.

Quote from Chapter 1 (page 12 in my copy): "Francie is entitled to one cup each meal like the rest. If it makes her feel better to throw it way rather than to drink it, all right. I think it's good that people like us can waste something once in a while and get the feeling of how it would be have lots of money and not have to worry about scrounging."

Katie says this early in the book when her sister Evy chastises her for allowing Francie to throw away her coffee. Again, this quote addresses the book's class theme. The Nolans cannot afford to throw anything at all away, and yet, Katie allows this one exception. This quote demonstrates Katie's pride, and the pride she wishes to pass on to her children. Katie is almost always depicted as practical rather than romantic. She would never be one to waste bread, milk, or heat. This philosophical reasoning seems an anomaly in her character, and yet, in the long run, she is doing what is best for her children. She wishes that her children should have dignity as well as practicality. Katie has figured out meticulously exactly how much money this system wastes—and that it is almost nothing, even for the Nolans. Wasting almost nothing is worth it, if it means that her children feel one luxury. from Spark Notes

I had forgotten that the entire first book (Chapters 1 - 6) is actually a description told from Francie's point of view. This makes me think that Brooklyn is also a character in the book, almost more important than the people that populate the area.

To learn a bit more about Williamsburg, Brooklyn where the story takes place (Wikipedia)

Book 2 talks more about the main characters and their backgrounds. In these chapters we get to know Katie and Johnny Nolan and their families.

I agree with you, Kathy. Class/place is definitely an integral part of this novel. The rituals described from the very start of the novel belong to a very specific part of the Brooklyn society and you rarely see a single character out of "place". What I noticed was that Francie has people in her life that are helping her move to a better place in this Brooklyn society. Each one did this through a small act, but I think it is helping her move along.

¬ Her grandmother Mary gives her mum some excellent advice, both on owning land and letting her children read every day.
¬ Her aunt Sissy is the one to get the Bible for Frannie. I found it incredibly endearing that she did this while being in her own "place" with a married man (her place as a bad woman).
¬ Her mother teaches her about luxury from very early on and even allows her to waste coffee and milk, just to make her feel privileged.

I am loving it so far though. I am really eager to see where all of this will lead Francie.

Thanks Maggie, that is some excellent insight.

I read this the first time it was selected as a group read (March 2012 I think) so anything I may contribute is from memory. I do remember Betty Smith’s writing being excellent, smooth easy to read and very picturesque. Her characters were complex and fully developed. Even minor characters such as store clerks were well described. Overall it’s a terrific story.

I started this yesterday and I've read the first 6 chapters from Francie's viewpoint, which comprise the first book. So far I'm really enjoying it. Not a lot has happened, but it's an extremely well written, slow paced, family saga.

I'd never heard of this book before joining goodreads, but I've often seen it mentioned and listed as people's favourite book. I think it's probably more well known in America, than here in the U.K.

I really enjoyed it and even read it twice.

Pink wrote: "I started this yesterday and I've read the first 6 chapters from Francie's viewpoint, which comprise the first book. So far I'm really enjoying it. Not a lot has happened, but it's an extremely wel..."

I just read this book last year for the first time and I thought it was fabulous! Five stars from me! I'm so happy I didn't listen to a Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ friend that said they hated it and that I shouldn't waste my time because then I would have missed out on a great book! :)

Glad you're enjoying Pink! :)

I, too, read this book for the first time last year - I'm not sure how I missed reading it growing up. I loved it so much. It was certainly one of the best books I read all year.

Pamela wrote: "I, too, read this book for the first time last year - I'm not sure how I missed reading it growing up. I loved it so much. It was certainly one of the best books I read all year."

I know Pamela! How did I miss the book growing up!?? It was also one of my favorites of last year too! :)

It is a beautiful book.I read this last month and loved it.definitely rereadable.

siriusedward wrote: "It is a beautiful book.I read this last month and loved it.definitely rereadable."

It is a beautiful book siriusedward! :)