It tells the story of seventh-grader Maleeka Madison who has low self-esteem because of her dark brown skin color.

[1] The novel's themes include self-love, self-esteem, the power of friendship, bullying and body image.

[2] In 2021, Sharon Flake published a sister novel, The Life I'm In, following the character Charlese Jones.

Maleeka is a seventh-grader who struggles with her body image due both to society and her classmates' colorist bullying.

After the terrible death of her father at age 10, her mother deals with depression by sewing clothes for her daughter.