40 Fun Facts About The Skin I'm In

In The Skin I'm In, what mark does new teacher Miss Saunders have on her face, which Charlese mocks?

A white patch runs across Miss Saunders's face, yet she tells the class she has grown to love how she looks, an attitude that surprises Maleeka.

In The Skin I'm In, what does Maleeka offer to do for Charlese in exchange for her protection at school?

Her homework is the price Maleeka pays to hang out with Charlese, the toughest girl around, who treats her with open contempt all the same.

In The Skin I'm In, what does Maleeka's mother take up to cope with grief after her husband dies?

Sewing is how Maleeka's mom deals with her depression, but she is a poor seamstress, so classmates tease Maleeka about her homemade outfits.

In The Skin I'm In, Maleeka's class diary follows Akeelma, a girl from centuries ago, trapped where?

On a slave ship bound for America is where Akeelma's diary unfolds, and her troubles so often echo Maleeka's own that the two voices start to blur.

In The Skin I'm In, what catches fire when Charlese's raid on Miss Saunders's classroom gets out of control?

The curtains go up in flames during the break-in, and Maleeka is the only one of the four girls spotted as they run away.

In The Skin I'm In, which of her worst bullies does Maleeka defend when a group of boys attacks him?

John-John had mocked Maleeka constantly, yet she wards off his attackers until Caleb and a group of adults arrive to help.

In The Skin I'm In, what keepsake from her late father helps Maleeka face classmates who mock her new look?

A hand mirror from her dad reminds Maleeka of his advice to see herself with her own eyes, so she cleans herself up and walks out with confidence.

In The Skin I'm In, to which state is Charlese sent to live with her grandparents after the truth comes out?

Alabama is where JuJu sends Charlese once Maleeka confesses, and a later companion novel, The Life I'm In, picks up Charlese's story.

In The Skin I'm In, what does Charlese force Maleeka to set alight on Miss Saunders's desk during the break-in?

Foreign money piled on the teacher's desk is what Maleeka is made to burn, and the blaze that follows leaves her facing $2,000 in fines.

In The Skin I'm In, what did Maleeka's late father write that helps her discover her own talent with words?

Poetry by her dad, including a piece written just for her, shows Maleeka where her gift comes from, and Caleb later writes verses for her too.

In The Skin I'm In, which grade is narrator Maleeka in during her troubled year at an inner-city school?

Seventh is Maleeka's year, and at 13 she tells the whole story in her own voice, taunts and all.

In The Skin I'm In, which subject does Miss Saunders teach after leaving the business world for the classroom?

English is Miss Saunders's subject, and one of her assignments pushes Maleeka to write the diary that later wins a contest.

In The Skin I'm In, what is the surname of Maleeka, the girl who narrates her own story?

Madison is Maleeka's family name, shared with the widowed mother who is raising her on her own.

In The Skin I'm In, which industry did Miss Saunders work in before taking a year out to teach?

Advertising was Miss Saunders's career, and she arrives at Maleeka's inner-city classroom as an expensively dressed executive on sabbatical.

In The Skin I'm In, which local institution runs the writing contest that Maleeka wins with her diary?

The library sends Maleeka a letter announcing her win while she is still in trouble over the classroom fire, and her mom is proud.

In The Skin I'm In, how does a bully taunt Maleeka about her dark skin during a bus ride with classmates?

With a song he made up himself, the bully gets other students joining in, and Caleb leaves Maleeka's side to sit with his friends.

In The Skin I'm In, how did Maleeka's father die, three years before the story begins?

A car accident took Maleeka's dad when she was 10, and the loss sent her mother into a depression that still shapes their home life.

In The Skin I'm In, where is Maleeka put to work at school to keep her out of trouble after a fight?

The office job is a plan devised by Miss Saunders and Maleeka's mom after Maleeka takes the blame for something Charlese did.

In The Skin I'm In, which relative has raised Charlese since her parents died two years earlier?

Her big sister JuJu, who is 25, is Charlese's guardian, and she storms into school to yell at Miss Saunders over Charlese's low marks.

In The Skin I'm In, what does JuJu keep doing that leaves Charlese's home dirty and full of strangers?

Throwing parties is JuJu's habit, and the state of the place makes Maleeka feel so bad for Charlese that she slips out and heads home.

In The Skin I'm In, which subject is taught by Tai, the college friend who urged Miss Saunders to try teaching?

Math is Tai's subject, and like her old friend she takes an interest in Maleeka, pressing her to keep her grades up.

In The Skin I'm In, which best friend of Maleeka's now attends a better school on the other side of town?

Sweets did everything with Maleeka until switching schools a year earlier, even though Maleeka had the grades to go as well.

In The Skin I'm In, what new look does Maleeka get at a salon, only to be teased for it at school?

A cropped haircut from a salon owner named Ronnie comes with a lesson from the women there on how to strut, yet classmates still make fun of it.

In The Skin I'm In, what is the name of the inner-city middle school where Maleeka is bullied?

McClenton is the middle school, in a city the book never names, where both the bullying and Miss Saunders's lessons play out.

In The Skin I'm In, Maleeka's classmate Desda has won several awards for which skill?

Cooking has won Desda several awards, and although she struggles in class she urges Maleeka not to let bullies get to her.

In The Skin I'm In, what are Charlese and her friends doing in the bathroom when Miss Saunders breaks it up?

Smoking and scrawling on the stalls is how the girls pass the time, and Maleeka has skipped her job to hang out with them.

In The Skin I'm In, where does Caleb finally explain to Maleeka why he walked away from her on the bus?

In detention Caleb says he thought the teasing would stop if they were no longer together, and he confesses that he still likes her.

In The Skin I'm In, what punishment does Maleeka get for the classroom fire, on top of a $2,000 bill?

Suspension keeps Maleeka at home while Charlese warns her not to tell on the others and says she will help pay the bill.

In The Skin I'm In, what does Maleeka falsely tell Miss Saunders when the teacher visits her home after the fire?

She acted alone, Maleeka claims, because Charlese has threatened to beat her up if she tells and has already framed her with planted evidence.

In The Skin I'm In, what item of Miss Saunders's is slipped into Maleeka's locker to frame her?

Her watch turns up in Maleeka's locker, planted so the school will believe she is the culprit, which makes telling the truth even harder.

Which author's debut novel was The Skin I'm In, the story of bullied schoolgirl Maleeka?

Sharon G. Flake was 42 when she wrote the book, and the first editor who saw the manuscript bought it.

In which city did the author of The Skin I'm In spend years in public relations at the local university?

Pittsburgh is where she studied and settled, though she was born across the state in Philadelphia and grew up in an inner-city neighborhood there.

To whom did the author of The Skin I'm In dedicate the novel, crediting that person as its inspiration?

Her daughter Brittney inspired the book, and the author credits her with starting her writing career.

The Skin I'm In won a 1999 new-talent prize within the book awards named for which American activist?

Coretta Scott King lends her name to the awards, whose New Talent prize, set up to give new voices more visibility, went to the novel.

Which award-winning author wrote the foreword for the 20th anniversary edition of The Skin I'm In?

Jason Reynolds introduced the anniversary edition, which came out in October 2018, two decades after the novel first appeared.

Before The Skin I'm In, its author won a short story contest named for which American playwright?

August Wilson gave his name to the contest she won, and a scholarship to a Highlights writers' conference followed before her first novel.

In The Skin I'm In, which Shakespeare play does Maleeka read for school?

Romeo and Juliet is the class text, while for her diary project Maleeka is given a different book by Miss Saunders to draw on.

In The Skin I'm In, Miss Saunders lends Maleeka a book that likely nods to an 1861 autobiography by which writer?

Harriet Jacobs told her own life story in that 1861 book, and the similarly titled one Maleeka is handed is meant to help with her diary assignment.

In The Skin I'm In, what job does Mr. Pajolli hold at Maleeka's school?

The principal hears complaints about the new teacher from students, colleagues and parents alike, as well as from an angry JuJu.

In The Skin I'm In, which pastime did Maleeka's late father encourage in her when she was growing up?

Reading was the love her dad nurtured, and three years after his death his influence on Maleeka is still profound.