The Skin I'm In by Sharon G. Flake

I chose to read The Skin I'm In because the Girlfriends Club at my school chose this as their reading selection for the year. Since I help out with that group, I wanted to keep up with what they were doing.  The club coordinator (our assistant principal) commented that she used this book at her last school and the kids always liked it.  After reading it myself, I can see why the kids are fans. 

The Skin I'm In tells the story of Maleeka Madison, an African American middle school student attending a rough-around-the-edges public school.  She is smart, but is constantly teased over the dark shade of her skin.  Bullying, peer pressure and struggles at home have given Maleeka a tough outer shell. She runs with the wrong crowd and is constantly being taken advantage of by her "friend," the tough-talking Charlese.  Her life begins to change when Mrs. Saunders, a new teacher, arrives at her school and takes an interest in her.  Ms. Saunders has a discolored area on her face, and must deal with insults about her appearance, just like Maleeka.  Her kindness and strength serve as a good example and with her guidance, Maleeka begins to explore her talents and break away from the ugliness and negativity that hold her back.

This book strikes me as being very relevant and true to today's students.  The issues that Maleeka faces--the bullying, the violence, the peer pressure--are pervasive problems in the school system that I see everyday.  Kids will easily be able to see themselves in this story and will hopefully be inspired by Maleeka's growth and Ms. Saunders' determination. 

In addition to being realistic, the novel is set up to be easy for students to read. It contains large font and informal language that low readers will have no difficulty understanding. At 171 pages, it is also a very manageable length.  It took me about one and a half hours to read.  Students could probably breeze through this in a few days or weeks, depending on their reading ability.

While this book is very obviously for a middle grades audience, I found that I was able to learn from it as well.  It gave me a bit of insight into the behaviors of kids that don't necessarily put their best foot forward at school.  I see puzzling behavior and squandered potential every day at my job, and I admit that while I try my best to keep an open mind, I don't always understand what drives students to act out.  I still wouldn't call myself an expert at adolescent behavior (who would?), but reading about Maleeka did show me some possibilities.

While I do think this is a valuable novel that teaches important lessons, it is extremely simple.  I often found myself wishing for some deeper characterization.  Aside from Maleeka and Ms. Saunders, every other character was extremely one dimensional.  At times, the writing was so stripped down that I would get confused and feel like I was missing details.  Perhaps this feeling is unfair, because I was reading a novel meant for a younger audience, but I felt like this writing was a little too plain, even for what it was supposed to be.   

I liked this book, and would most definitely recommend it to my students who aren't enthusiastic or highly skilled readers.  It was a bit simplistic for me, but there is a lot to this novel for kids who don't often find literature they can relate to.