Finding My Place
Grade 5–9—Tiphanie Baker respects her parents' participation in the 1960s Civil Rights Movement and lives up to their expectations, which include always "uplifting her race" by working extra hard and by following the rules. But when she finds out that she must start her freshman year as the only black girl at an affluent, predominantly white school, she wonders if she has the strength. Set in Denver in 1975, the book portrays the mood and perceptions of the time. People of differing ethnicities and races are still becoming accustomed to living, working, and going to school together, as demonstrated by the awkwardness and uncertainty with which Tiphanie and her fellow students regard each other. The issues of class and racial identity are exacerbated when Tiphanie, who is working through her own feelings of isolation and uncertainty, befriends a white girl who is ostracized because she is poor and lives in a trailer park. As the protagonist starts to feel more comfortable and accepted by her classmates, she struggles with the idea that by liking them she is not being true to her former friends, who begin to question her commitment. The story, with its accurate portrayal of the period and realistic depictions of friendships and family issues, is interesting and enjoyable. The well-developed characters confront their own stereotypes and perceptions of race, learning something about one another and about themselves.—Margaret Auguste, Franklin Middle School, Somerset, NJCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.