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For a debut novel, Brown Girl, Brownstones by Paule Marshall sure is a tour de force. Our protagonist, Selina Boyce is caught between her hopeless dreamer father, Deighton, and resilient yet hard-edged mother, Silla, as she navigates adolescence. With the fraught tension between her parents as a backdrop, Selina struggles with feeling unlovable, the complicated feelings of hating and admiring her mother and how best to carve out a space for herself.  

In this episode, we learn that sadly…Hawa did not finish this book BUT she promises to finish it in the indeterminate future. We’ll hold her to it. Heather lets us know her feelings about Deighton (spoiler: he’s worthless). And Heather and Hannah get sucked into the possible local connections to the cult Marshall took inspiration from for the novel. Be on the look out for that deep dive! 

These Books Made Me is a podcast about the literary heroines who shaped us and is a product of the Prince George's County Memorial Library System podcast network. Stay in touch with us via #TheseBooksMadeMe on socials, follow us on Instagram @TheseBooksMadeMe or reach out by email at [email protected]. 

For recommended readalikes and deep dives into topics related to each episode, visit our blog at https://pgcmls.medium.com/.