BROWN GIRL, BROWN GIRL by Cozbi A. Cabrera - Publishers Weekly starred review

Publishers Weekly | September 13, 2024

Honoré’s energetic poem-turned– picture book debut offers a contemplative call-and-response-style ode to brown girls everywhere. Opening, a querying line asks, “Brown girl, brown girl,/ what did you see?” A page turn later, the answer appears, alongside images of a Black child curled in the fetal position: “a world that sees my skin/ before it sees me.” Subsequent lines beginning “brown girl, brown girl” ask, “what did you feel?” and “what did you do?”

In scene after scene, striking painterly acrylics by Caldecott Honoree Cabrera picture brown girls of myriad hair textures and skin tones joining together to dance, play, and stand tall. After text asks, “Brown girl, brown girl,/ what do you know?” the answer (“That there are strong women/ who want me to grow”) attends girls riding bikes by a mural of notable women of color, reflecting the aspirations and limitless possibility of individuals including Kamala Harris, Frida Kahlo, Toni Morrison, and Malala Yousafzai.

The response to a final question—“Brown girl, brown girl,/ who will you be?”—provides a meaningful vision of the future: “a powerful woman/ who is wonderfully free.” An author’s note concludes.