Will I love The Darkest Child?

Set in Georgia in 1958, Tang Mae is the darkest of ten fatherless children and considered by her mother the ugliest. However, she is selected to attend a white school because she is gifted. This gives her an opportunity to change her life, but she must first break free from her mother's grasp.

There were many times I wanted to put this book down and not finish it. The brutality and abuse were hard to bear. And yet, I felt compelled to read the entire thing because I wanted to see Tang Mae succeed.

It inspired me that she never… show more.

This novel takes place in Pakersfield, Georgia, 1958. The darkest child is Tangy Mae Quinn who is the sixth of ten fatherless siblings. She is the darkest-skinned among them and considered the ugliest by her mother, who is light-skinned, but she is the brightest and has been selected to be part of the first integrated class at a nearby White high school.