Born In Sin by Evelyn ColemanWhen Keisha is called to the office, she expects to be informed that she has been accepted to Avery college's medical program for honor students. Instead she finds tthat she is being sent to a summer program for at-risk kids run by very smug and superior whites, and that she is no longer eligible for Avery's scholarship. From the group of kids being sent from her school, Keisha makes friends with Betty(and gets a crush on Betty's brother). When the camp goes to the beach, Betty almost drowns, and the lifeguard refuses to try to save her. The campers know that this is because Betty is black. Keisha learns from this experience: she learns that she needs to know how to swim, because blacks have to know how to rescue their own drowning. Keisha and Betty join a pool, and then a swim team. Keisha finds that she is an awesome swimmer, and she wins at all of her meets. But then Betty starts to date the neighborhood drug dealer and all-around lowlife, Keisha's mother has a suspicious amount of money for someone who's just been laid off, and Keisha has to grapple with all of the parts of her life.
This books is narrated by Keisha in
AAVE. It deals with the challenges facing those in poor black neighborhoods on their way to education and success.
Recommended reading.
: 12:23 PM
