Comment on style / language

The language of Another Brooklyn is lyrical and often verges on the poetic. From the very first sentence, "For a long time my mother wasn't dead yet," (1) the reader is aware that the narrative will be anything but straightforward. Instead, Woodson uses a combination of lush imagery and almost impressionistic vignettes to knit together the larger narrative. There are rarely ever explicit connections drawn between scenes. Instead, the individual moments of August's life are juxtaposed within chapters, forcing readers to draw their own connections between ideas, scenes, and events.