The Skin I'm In

Flake, Sharon. The Skin I'm In. New York: Jump at the Sun/Hyperion for Children, 1998. Print.

Maleeka Madison struggles to fit in her high school and for good reason.  Ever since her father died, her mother makes all of Maleeka's clothes in order to cope with the loss, making Maleeka the target for many of her classmates jokes.  If that wasn't hard enough, she is also picked on for having very dark skin, which forces Maleeka to feel self conscious about the way she looks.  This all changes however when Mrs. Saunders becomes her new English teacher at school.  Mrs. Saunders is a strong, confident, and determined woman, most of which comes from dealing with a skin deformity that she was born with.  Mrs. Saunders is the perfect role model for Maleeka to show that no matter how you look, you are undeniably beautiful.  We follow Maleeka on her journey to fight peer pressure, bullying, and finally accept the way she is meant to be.


This book was a very quick read.  The vocabulary was very simple and the book was under 200 pages.  I think the book is more geared towards girls than boys and I think it would be very hard for boys to relate to Maleeka's character.  All of the main characters are women, possibly making it difficult for boys to find interest in the book.  I thought the book was interesting, however it didn't seem like a very creative story line and overall it was pretty predictable.  I do not believe this book would be extremely effective in the classroom, but rather should be used for a student's personal read.