Color Me In is the coming of age story of a 16-year old Nevaeh Levitz. Growing up in an affluent NYC suburb, attending a prestigious private school in Riverdale, Nevaeh never considered her bi-racial roots beyond feeling like she didn’t really “fit in” with her peers. She never even really considered that her very best friend, Stevie, is also bi-racial and facing some of the prejudice that she is able to avoid.
When Nevaeh’s Black mom and White Jewish dad split up, Nevaeh and her mom move in with the mom’s family in Harlem. At the same time, her dad decides that even though Nevaeh is past Bat Mitzvah age, this is a ritual he wishes her to partake in. Now Nevaeh is really forced to come to terms with who she is.
Nevaeh develops a relationship with non-traditional Rabbi Sara while preparing for her Bat Mitzvah. For the sake of the synagogue book club, I wish that this part of the storyline had been more developed. Much more of the story is about Navaeh's realizations of how much easier her life has been because she can pass for White. Thinking outside of just the book club, I really did appreciate the way that Diaz dealt with many of the race issues.
I also really liked that Color Me In was not predictable. I had a preconceived notion of how the novel would end and it did not end that way.
For the next two months, I will keep my fingers crossed that the members of the book club will have some appreciation for this young adult fiction since I was the one to recommend it.
No comments:
Post a Comment