The Skin I’m In

When Maleeka gets home, her mom takes her downtown to buy new clothing because she got a bonus at work. So, the next day, Maleeka is excited to “look like somebody” without Charlese’s help. She’s excited that all eyes are on her. But Charlese rudely says that it’s about time Maleeka’s mom broke down and bought her some new clothes.

That day, in English class, Miss Saunders partners Maleeka and another girl named Desda for a group project instead of letting the students choose their partners. Desda is short and fat and has won awards for her cooking, but she’s a very poor reader and writer. For the assignment, Miss Saunders asks the class to pretend that they’re teenagers living in the 17th century and to write a diary about their experiences. She says that she wants them to understand what it’s like to see the world though someone else’s eyes.

At first, Maleeka and Desda do nothing for 10 minutes. But when Miss Saunders reminds them that they only have 20 minutes left, Maleeka gets to work. She writes about a teenage girl on a slave ship. The girl doesn’t have much to eat, and she’s embarrassed that a boy named Kinjari can see her sitting in her own filth with her head shaved. But when Kinjari stares at the girl, she wonders if she’s beautiful. She writes that “Beauty is where one finds it, my father used to say.” Then, the girl falls ill, and Kinjari is gone when she wakes up. Another girl, who’s been stealing the girl’s food, says that Kinjari was thrown overboard—but the girl doesn’t believe it. Maleeka signs the entry “Akeelma,” which is close to her name backwards.

Desda asks how Maleeka learned to “talk proper” like Akeelma does. Maleeka says that, before her dad died, he read her books with characters that spoke like that. Then, Miss Saunders collects and reads some of the stories to the class. When she reads Maleeka and Desda’s, she compliments them on the writing. After class, Miss Saunders offers to give Maleeka and Desda extra credit to keep doing the assignment. Desda admits that Maleeka did most of the writing, and Maleeka agrees to keep going. She thinks to herself that she actually likes the writing.