Summary
After a humiliating “final straw,” Latoya prays that God would make her “anything but black.” The next day she is a blonde, blue eyed white girl, still living with her black family. They are the only ones who still see her as she originally was. Latoya gets to experience her school and her peers as “Katarina” the white exchange student. She talks face to face at times with Jesus about her transformation.
Review
This was a fascinating story. Toya feels all the pain in her life is the fault of her race. At times it was difficult to read – the cruelty, the blatant racism, the crass moments. But it made me think, which I think is a great quality in a book.
I would love to read this with a group of white and black readers and hear from others what they thought of the portrayals in the story. Online reviews are mixed and most of the ones I saw were written by white people. There’s an element of a story like this that begs to be enhanced by conversation. I wonder – are the characters in the book the worst of stereotypes? Or are there high school students who have had experiences like this? Are there minority students who hate their own race because of the bigotry they experience? And if so, how can we help them?
If I had one complaint about the book, it would be that it doesn’t offer any solutions. Toya’s resolution seems centered more on her individual life and circumstances and less on a universal experience or revelation about valuing her race.
Racial issues are front and center in our country these days. I think it’s important to read books that explore race and racism, especially ones that expose readers to perspectives that are different from their own. (This book includes some language as well as an attempted sexual assault. May be best suited for mature readers.)