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A review by cocoonofbooks
If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
4.0
I was surprised how much the ending of this book affected me emotionally, since 1) I was already 98% sure how the book would end, 2) I didn't feel like we had enough time to get to know the characters very well, and 3) their relationship was very, very insta-love. But the book's quiet, understated tone and quick pace made it a bit easier to accept the lack of details in either plot or character development; it's more enjoyable if you accept it for what it is rather than focusing on what it's not.
I didn't realize until I finished that this book is 20 years old, but that explains a lot, like why Ellie's sister and her partner were having a "commitment ceremony" and why no one had cell phones. (This latter point actually didn't strike me until I was done, I think because there are no plot points that hinge on whether or not the main characters can communicate when they aren't together.) The fact that the larger issues — the drama in their families, the racism they face, the lack of diversity at their prep school — aren't much different today allowed the book to still feel (unfortunately) timely.
I thought it was interesting, and wise, that Woodson chose to make Jeremiah the son of wealthy, famous parents. It allows there to be a separation of the issues of class and race, so that it's clear what it is a consequence of racism and nothing else and we can also see where others are conflating class and race. I liked that Ellie was Jewish, and that that's a genuine part of her character — there are discussions of keeping kosher and whether her siblings are coming to visit for particular holidays — while also never being made into one of the book's Issues. I'm not sure if this was Woodson's intent, but it kind of shows that while our country does place Christianity on a pedestal, Ellie benefits from white privilege far more than Jeremiah benefits from the privilege of not being Jewish. (Or maybe I'm wrong and it's just that it's set in New York City, where being Jewish is more common than in other parts of the country.)
I do really wish that we'd gotten to see more of a relationship develop between Ellie and Jeremiah. Once they actually get together, I enjoyed the way that their feelings for each other were described — particularly how the other person made them feel safe and listened to — but everything leading up to that was like... you bumped into each other one for 5 seconds and now neither of you can stop thinking about the other? And not just like, "Huh, I can't get my mind off this person," but like, "I am going to mention to my sister/friend that there's someone I have a serious crush on even though I have only spoken to them for 5 seconds." There were enough pages and pages of daydreaming that Woodson could have used some of them to have Ellie and Jeremiah have actual, flirty, getting-to-know-you conversations before they went all in to cut class for each other.
I want to believe that the ending is unrealistic,that a police officer would shoot someone dead for nothing more than not stopping when he said "Stop," but I honestly don't think that it is... even today. Which is terrible and sad and I guess kind of the point of the book.
All in all, this was a well done book, even with the insta-love that made me roll my eyes :)
I didn't realize until I finished that this book is 20 years old, but that explains a lot, like why Ellie's sister and her partner were having a "commitment ceremony" and why no one had cell phones. (This latter point actually didn't strike me until I was done, I think because there are no plot points that hinge on whether or not the main characters can communicate when they aren't together.) The fact that the larger issues — the drama in their families, the racism they face, the lack of diversity at their prep school — aren't much different today allowed the book to still feel (unfortunately) timely.
I thought it was interesting, and wise, that Woodson chose to make Jeremiah the son of wealthy, famous parents. It allows there to be a separation of the issues of class and race, so that it's clear what it is a consequence of racism and nothing else and we can also see where others are conflating class and race. I liked that Ellie was Jewish, and that that's a genuine part of her character — there are discussions of keeping kosher and whether her siblings are coming to visit for particular holidays — while also never being made into one of the book's Issues. I'm not sure if this was Woodson's intent, but it kind of shows that while our country does place Christianity on a pedestal, Ellie benefits from white privilege far more than Jeremiah benefits from the privilege of not being Jewish. (Or maybe I'm wrong and it's just that it's set in New York City, where being Jewish is more common than in other parts of the country.)
I do really wish that we'd gotten to see more of a relationship develop between Ellie and Jeremiah. Once they actually get together, I enjoyed the way that their feelings for each other were described — particularly how the other person made them feel safe and listened to — but everything leading up to that was like... you bumped into each other one for 5 seconds and now neither of you can stop thinking about the other? And not just like, "Huh, I can't get my mind off this person," but like, "I am going to mention to my sister/friend that there's someone I have a serious crush on even though I have only spoken to them for 5 seconds." There were enough pages and pages of daydreaming that Woodson could have used some of them to have Ellie and Jeremiah have actual, flirty, getting-to-know-you conversations before they went all in to cut class for each other.
I want to believe that the ending is unrealistic,
All in all, this was a well done book, even with the insta-love that made me roll my eyes :)