betsey brown

The novel portrays Betseys growth and development as she strives to understand who she is. During this age frame 10-15 children and young teens learn to express their identity in a mature way. Its sad at a young age to have to put up with racial inequality. While reading this book I started to feel bad for Betsey Brown. At such a young age she has had so much responsibilities put on her that it is causing her abnormal amounts of stress. This is found very often in homes today where the parents do not have enough time to do chores so they are putting it on their children at young ages. My cousin is already doing the family laundry at age 8! Chores are ok, but its not normal for a young child to have as many responsibilities as an adult. Because Betsey has had so much put on her, she has grown up and matured really fast. When she ran away, I thought to myself about when I was a child and had all these pressures put on me. She felt like she did not fit in and that nobody liked her. I always did the chores around the house and yet I felt like I was the one who was always getting yelled at and made fun of. There is plenty of tension and conflict in this book, its a sensitive novel for a young child who is ready to begin becoming a women, and experience life as a different person. The book did not interest me much, but it defiantly should be shared with young girls ages 10-16.