The Girl Who Fell from the Sky

This one's a goody.  It's about a biracial girl who's lost her white, Danish mother in an accident and is raised by her African American grandmother in the early 80's in Portland, Oregon.  She has a hard time finding a group to identify with and never feels quite at home with anyone.  She doesn't want to deny her European heritage, but she's shunned by her African American friends when she acts "too white".  She's got light brown skin and striking blue eyes.  She's stunning, but no one really knows what to do with her.  Least of all herself.

Why did I love this book so much?  Maybe because it's written so poetically.  Maybe it's because I grew up in Portland, Oregon in the same neighborhood and at the same time as the main character.  I could identify with the social injustices that were going on in that place and time because I was there, too.  I was part of the same public school system that churned out this type of youth.  I was and am proud of the diverse group of friends I came up with, yet I lived kitty corner to one of the skinheads who killed the Ethiopian man mentioned in this book.  Diversity is great, but it isn't always harmonious.

The whole time I was reading this book, I had the song 'Ebony and Ivory' on a permanent loop in my head.  Now it's in yours.  Ha!  When I was in the fourth grade, my best friend was Nicole Glaster.  She happened to be African American.  'Ebony and Ivory' was a huge hit at the time and we used to sing it to each other at recess.  When auditions for the annual talent show opened up, we thought our act would be an obvious winner.  We tried out and felt pretty confident about our odds.  The talent judge was our African American music teacher who also happened to be a brilliant pianist, for God's sake.  When the list of performers who'd made the cut was posted, guess who wasn't on it?  Really, Ms. Washington?  I'm still pissed.  To this day, whenever I hear that song, I can feel my gorge rising.

Anyway, the issues raised in The Girl Who Fell from the Sky are still very relevant today.  The 80's weren't so long ago.  My daughter's in the public school system now and her friends come in all shapes and sizes and I'm grateful for that.  I want her to grow up knowing that we're all on equal footing, whatever we look like.  Get this book.  I think you'll like it.