The Skin I'm In by Sharon G. Flake
The Skin I'm In
by Sharon G. Flake
(Audio)
This is the story of a thirteen-year-old girl named Maleeka who is teased at school because her skin color is extremely dark and because her mother sews her clothes (and does a terrible job). She isn't happy with her appearance or herself because of it, but it would be doing this book a disservice if I summarized the book by saying she meets a teacher with a birthmark on her face and discovers that she is beautiful just the way she is! Because, yes, that's true, but there is soooooo much more to the story than that.
There's the sort of deep self-exploration that you don't usually get in books, with honesty and self-hatred and the inability to understand why the world is the way it is. There is metaphor and struggle that results in realization and learning. But it also takes time, experience, conversations, mistakes/lessons, and more. I loved that Maleeka wrote a short story about a slave girl to help express some of her emotions and also journaled; I loved the honesty and emotion that came through on the page. I loved Maleeka finding a poem her late father wrote about her being beautiful. I loved the teacher trying to help and not being perfect either, but trying to help in every way she can, even against some parents' or fellow teachers' advice. Teachers, like students, have to worry about fitting in. I liked the realistic portrayal of difficulties Maleeka goes through--she is bullied, attacked on the street, trapped, and convinced (peer pressure) to do things she doesn't want.
Which leads me to Char, a character I did NOT like. I wanted to kick that girl! She uses Maleeka and manipulates her, calling her a friend the whole time. It's disgusting... and painfully realistic. She's going through 7th grade for the third time and brings Maleeka clothes to wear at school in exchange for Maleeka doing her homeworkk for her. Char gets her to do all sorts of horrible things and think all sorts of horrible things. Maleeka is put in terrible positions. And Char is mean to so many people--stealing boyfriends, insulting everyone including teachers, etc. She says some horrible things that I just couldn't stand. I wanted Maleeka to dump her right away, but I see why it was so hard for Maleeka to stand up against her. It's hard to stand up to someone you think is your friend.
There are also some boys involved, of course--one who is especially terrible and also says some of the meanest things in the whole book, and another who is quite kind and sweet, but dumps Maleeka when people start insulting her. Some friend! Of course, it ends up turning out well for her in the end. And she definitely has a higher opinion of herself--in what she can do, in who she is, and because of how she looks--independant of what any boys might think.
This might be one of those terrible comments made by a white person, but as I was reading this, I had an intense urge to rewatch "The Ron Clark Story" movie. So I did :-)
I did really enjoy this book, even though I spent most of it swearing and shaking my fist at Char. Grrr. I really disliked her. But I liked watching Maleeka realize she is beautiful inside and out.