**Winner of the Coretta Scott King awardSharon Flake's award-winning, empowering debut novel follows one girl's struggle toward self acceptance, no matter what the world throws her way. Includes a foreword by bestselling, award-winning author Jason Reynolds!**Maleeka suffers every day from the taunts of the other kids in her class. If they're not getting at her about her homemade clothes or her good grades, it's about her dark, black skin. Maleeka does whatever she can to t...

Guys and girls get together, get played, and get real.Who Am I Without Him? is a Booklist Top Ten Romance Novel for Teens and is "breaking new and necessary ground"in twelve short stories about guys and girls falling in and out of love and relationships, testing out ways to communicate with one another, respect each other -- and respect themselves.This is a complex, often humorous, and always on-point exploration of today'...

In 9 stories and 15 poems, Sharon G. Flake provides insight into the minds of a diverse group adolescent African American males.here's Tow-Kaye, getting married at age 16 to love of his life, who's pregnant. He knows it's the right thing to do, but he's scared to death. James writes in his diary about his twin brother's terrible secret, which threatens to pull James down, too. Tyler explains what it's like to be a player with the ladies. In a letter to his uncle, L...

The mesmerizing story of one girl's struggle to break her family's cycle of poverty is reissued with an arresting new cover.Thirteen-year-old Raspberry Hill is starved for money. She will do just about anything legal to get her hands on the almighty dollar -- wash cars, sell rotten candy, skip lunch, clean houses. She is obsessed. She is driven. She is afraid. Memories of being homeless, sleeping in the streets, and eating handouts keep Raspberry's eye on the only ...

Sharon Flake’s award-winning debut novelMaleeka suffers every day from the taunts of the other kids in her class. If they’re not getting at her about her homemade clothes or her good grades, it’s about her dark, black skin.When a new teacher, whose face is blotched with a startling white patch, starts at their school, Maleeka can see there is bound to be trouble for her too. But the new teacher’s attitude surprises Maleeka. Miss Saunders loves the skin she’...

Award-winning author, Sharon G. Flake, presents a powerful novel about a teen boy and girl, each tackling disabilities.Autumn and Adonis have nothing in common and everything in common. Autumn is outgoing and has lots of friends. Adonis is shy and not so eager to connect with people. But even with their differences, the two have one thing in common--they're each dealing with a handicap. For Autumn, who has a learning disability, reading is a painful struggle that makes it hard to f...

For fans of Mo Willem's Elephant and Piggie and Pigeon series, this clever and hilarious story stars Cat, who starts out perfectly content and relaxed, and Duck, who infuriates him by meowing like a cat instead of quacking like Cat thinks he should.Written completely in dialogue, this minimalist text is fun to read aloud and easy enough for newly independent readers to enjoy on their own. Humorous and deceptively simple artwork highlights the char...

The powerful and long-anticipated companion to The Skin I'm In, Sharon Flake's bestselling modern classic, presents the unflinching story of Char, a young woman trapped in the underworld of human trafficking.*My feet are heavy as stones when I walk up the block wondering why I can't find my old self.*In The Skin I'm In, readers saw into the life of Maleeka Madison, a teen who suffered from the ridicule she received because of her dark skin color. For decades fans ...

From the three-time Coretta Scott King Honor winning author of The Skin I'm In comes a poignant story about a southern girl far from home at an elite girls boarding school in the north, who must find the courage to be herself and to dream of a brighter future, set against the backdrop of the great migration in South Philly.You can be what you want in life.Climb as high as you wish.Nothing can stop you,not...

Perfect for fans of Mo Willems and Jon Klassen, award-winning author Sharon G. Flake’s story about a very serious cat and a very silly duck will inspire giggles with every reading.Best friends Duck and Cat have a problem—Cat makes Duck sneeze! “I think—achoo!—I’m allergic to you,” Duck declares. Hilarity ensues as Cat keeps trying to solve the problem—but Duck keeps sneezing! Is Duck really allergic to Cat or is something else going on?Written comp...

A beautiful and uplifting novel in verse about family, friendship, journeys that take us far from home and back again, renewed and more courageous from the three-time Coretta Scott King Honor winner of The Skin I'm In!James Henry used to be brave. He hasn't been the same since that fateful night at the lighthouse when his ma went searching for Dog. Now months later, he feels as small as the space between the numbers on a watch, nervous day and night, barel...

In 9 stories and 15 poems, Sharon G. Flake provides insight into the minds of a diverse group adolescent African American males. There's Tow-Kaye, getting married at age 16 to love of his life, who's pregnant. He knows it's the right thing to do, but he's scared to death. James writes in his diary about his twin brother's terrible secret, which threatens to pull James down, too. Tyler explains what it's like to be a player with the ladies. In a letter to his uncle, La'Ron confesses that he...