Another theme that would be important to discuss in today's world (and/or today's classroom) would be school bullying. One doesn't have to look even further than the main character: Maleeka Madison. Maleeka is the main victim of the bullying. In fact, she is teased mercilessly both for her skin color and her homemade dresses.
If bullying is a theme then there is not only a victim, but also at least one bully. The irony of the bully's in this book is that they involve almost all of the other school children including the only other black boy in the class. Further, it should surprise the reader that another black child should bully another one about being the very same skin color.
Another aspect of the bullying theme is the discovery of how the main victim (Maleeka) deals with it. Other than having severely low self-esteem, Maleeka tries to cope with the bullying by befriending the roughest girl in the school, Charlese, yet another bully. Of course, by the end of the story, Maleeka realizes that neither bullying nor being bullied is the answer. Maleeka learns to love "the skin I'm in."
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