A Voice of Her Own: Becoming Emily Dickinson
By Debra Bogart,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Lovely first-person narration helps bring Dickinson to life.
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this book.
Where to Read
Community Reviews
Based on 1 parent review
Report this review
What's the Story?
From the age of 9 through 24, Emily Dickinson's life is told as imagined by author Barbara Dane. In a close-knit family that contained a domineering, depressive father and a compliant mother, Emily tells of learning to bake, to embroider, her love of siblings, nature, and close friends. During puberty she begins to realize the restricted roles placed on women by society and strives to find a way to keep "her own voice," and turns more and more to writing poems to express her feelings, large and small. She lives a privileged life that is not without illness and as a young woman begins experiencing panic attacks, which plagued her the rest of her life. She decided against becoming a born-again Christian, even as she watched her friends embrace religion; she also watches them narrow their interests to men and marriage, and perhaps it is her conviction to remain her own person that keeps her from falling in love with any available men before this biography ends.
Is It Any Good?
Dane has done a wonderful job of inhabiting Dickinson's life. She portrays her as an intelligent and loving young woman who did not see herself as anything special, but nonetheless faced obstacles such as panic attacks with determination and an unfailing appreciation of the beauty of the world around her. Readers who enjoy Jane Austen novels or historical fiction will also enjoy A VOICE OF HER OWN; readers who already love Dickinson's poetry will find her world opening up with this book.
Dane magically sprinkles some phrases used by Dickinson throughout the book, while creating new poems as Emily might have that create the same universal appeal. Author's notes include phrases from Dickinson's writing that the author included; basic facts about Dickinson, notes about the author's research, and a bibliography for further reading.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the opening issue of the story: why was Emily so alarmed at moving from her current house at age 24 back to her childhood home? Do adult children still live as long with their parents today? Why or why not?
This is a fictionalized story of how Emily's life may have been, based on extensive research. Would Emily herself mind having another write about her in this way? Why did the author make her own poems for Emily, instead of inserting Emily's own poetry?
Emily felt constrained by the expectations of a woman in her lifetime. Do you think other young women felt that way at the time? What did Emily do about it?
Did this story make you want to read some of Emily Dickinson's poetry? Have you ever written your own poems?
Nature and animals were very, very important to Emily. Why do you think she felt so close to nature?
Book Details
- Author: Barbara Dana
- Genre: Biography
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: HarperTeen
- Publication date: March 1, 2009
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 12 - 17
- Number of pages: 16
- Last updated: July 12, 2017
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Read
Our Editors Recommend
Biographies
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate