Malcolm and Me: A Novel

Taking place in 1973, Malcolm and Me is a novel about Roberta Forest, a black eighth-grader who’s wise beyond her years. Roberta is top of her class at her catholic school, a rebel, and a poet. At school, her rebellious, social activist side is not always appreciated and one day she gets into a fight with one of her teachers, Sister Elizabeth, over the hypocrisy of Thomas Jefferson having owned slaves. Things only go downhill from there. Her birthday is ruined by her parents getting the call from the school, her parents fight, and school only gets worse. Roberta starts to notice racist things about her religion and teachers and takes a stand. This book is a fantastic glimpse into Philadelphia in the early ’70s, the topic of the book is heavy but Roberta is a very strong and persevering character. There are lots of references to pop culture back then, music, dance, and television. One of my favorite parts was when Roberta’s mom says “I’d like to think future presidents will fall in love with the truth instead of power and corruption.”. Another one of my favorite things is all of Roberta’s poetry throughout the book, it really brought the book to life. I would recommend this book to people who are interested in social justice, the 70s, or rebellious characters who are thirteen and up.