Rarely has a first novel come to hand which has the poignant appeal and the fresh, fierce emotion of "Brown Girl, Brownstones."…

Racial conflict and the anger and frustration it nurtures are part of this tale, but equally, if not more, important are the personal conflicts of men and women making roots in a new land, of men and women caught in duels of love and hate, of ambition, envy and failure.

While Selina is the heroine of this novel, it is her parents who give it and her its depth and color. Through them, through their passions, their clashes, their hopes, the girl assumes shape and meaning.

To Silla, gaunt and strong, the brownstone house in Brooklyn which she leased represented a giant step from the slavish toil she had known in Barbados. To own the once elegant building, to cut up its enormous chambers, to have...