Jacqueline Woodson Quotes

American - Writer | February 12, 1963 -

The strength of my mother is something I didn't pay attention to for so long. Here she was, this single mom, who was part of the Great Migration, who was part of a Jim Crow south, who said, 'I'm getting my kids out of here. I'm creating opportunities for these young people by any means necessary.'

Jacqueline Woodson

StrengthMotherGreatPeopleMom

My grandparents were wealthy; my mom was not. I would walk into these worlds of privilege and then walk back into this other world. My little brother is biracial. So race and economic class and sexuality - these were always issues that were a part of my life.

Jacqueline Woodson

LifeWalkBrotherMomWorldMy Life

I think people are willing to talk about anything if you come to it with kindness.

Jacqueline Woodson

KindnessPeopleThinkYouTalkCome

My mom was very strict. And we were very religious. So I knew that I was not allowed to do the wrong thing. And I knew that I had a home I could run to. And I had a mom.

Jacqueline Woodson

HomeMomWrongRunWrong ThingKnew

I couldn't be a writer without hope. I think I became a writer because I'm pretty optimistic.

Jacqueline Woodson

HopeThinkWithoutPrettyBecause

The South was very segregated. I mean, all through my childhood, long after Jim Crow was supposed to not be in existence, it was still a very segregated South.

Jacqueline Woodson

ChildhoodLongMeanExistenceStill

Friendship is such an important thing to me, and I feel like the people who I love and help keep me whole - I can't imagine a life without them.

Jacqueline Woodson

LifeFriendshipLovePeopleMeHelp

Every time you revisit a book, you get something else out of it.

Jacqueline Woodson

TimeBookYouOutSomethingGet

My kids speak of both subtle slights and blatant racism. It's a narrative I never imagined for them.

Jacqueline Woodson

RacismSpeakNeverNarrativeKids

I would have written 'Brown Girl Dreaming' if no one had ever wanted to buy it, if it went nowhere but inside a desk drawer that my own children pulled out one day to find a tool for survival, a symbol of how strong we are and how much we've come through.

Jacqueline Woodson

GirlChildrenDayStrongSurvival

Who are you without your girls? I truly believe that. Who are you without the people who help you make sense of the misogyny, the racism, the economic struggle, all of it? You need those people saying you're a good mom, a great writer. You're a great dresser. You cook well. Whatever the beauty is that you need to hear.

Jacqueline Woodson

GoodBeautyGreatStruggleRacism

Sometimes, when I'm sitting at my desk for long hours and nothing's coming to me, I remember my fifth-grade teacher, the way her eyes lit up when she said, 'This is really good.'

Jacqueline Woodson

GoodTeacherEyesMeRememberLong

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