Heidi W. Durrow's The Girl Who Fell From The Sky

On page 243 Rachel's mother writes the words, “She knows the word. She is black. I know she is not a word.” She is referring to the N word. Rachel’s mother is white and her father is black. The novel The Girl who Fell From the Sky, written by Heidi W. Durrow, is the story of a “light-skinned-ed” girl, named Rachel, who struggles with her race and how it relates to her identity. After the death of her family she is thrust into an all-black community to live with her black grandmother, and for the first time in her life is expected to “act black.” Because of her lighter skin and startling, blue eyes, she attracts a lot of unwanted attention. As Rachel grows up and tries to swallow her grief, she is constantly asking herself why she must be defined by her skin and why labels are so important in the

She begins to understand that her skin doesn’t need to define her. Brick is mixed a race, just like Rachel, and provides a new and fresh perspective for her, something that she can finally relate to. Brick steers her away from bad decisions and helps her build a life for herself. He helps her get a job and he plays a role in building her confidence as well. Before Brick entered her life, Rachel felt lost. She saw no future for herself and didn’t know who she was or who she wanted to be. All she needed was a little guidance from someone who understood her perspective, and was able to look past her reserved personality and tragic past. Brick was just the person for her. At the end of the novel, on page 264, Rachel describes the look in Brick’s eyes, “When he looks at me it feels like no one has really seen me since the accident. In his eyes, I’m not the new girl. I’m not the color of my skin. I’m a story. One with a past and future unwritten.” This quote shows that Rachel feels hope for the first time since before the accident, hope for her future and hope that she will feel okay