Calling My Name is a fictional coming of age story set in the 80’s about an African American girl named Taja Brown from Houston, Texas. The book explores the challenges of growing up and follows Taja on her journey to becoming a woman through middle school and high school. Throughout her journey, she deals with the physical and emotional challenges of discovering herself and her relationships with family, friends, spirituality, and first love.
Captivating, humorous, and at times, serious, this heartfelt story was hard to put down. I enjoyed reading this book because it talks about growing up in a way that doesn’t make it seem so hard. There is enough humor to make the audience enjoy the book. The author brings up topics such as race, religion, school, friends, and family, and Taja learns how to adapt to changes that take place as she grows up and explores her identity. I really like how the author can sometimes speak in a poetic tone throughout the book. There is also very strong imagery throughout the book because of that, and it makes you feel like you’re there, experiencing the same things or understanding what it was like to be there. There were a few small parts that I didn’t enjoy, but otherwise, it’s a great book. I also enjoyed how some of the chapters were vignettes, and how each one was like a small snapshot of a piece of Taja’s life and identity. It captures the reality of growing up very well. This book is similar to books by Judy Blume and similar to The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. If you enjoyed those books or other Coming of Age stories, you’ll definitely enjoy this book.
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