When Anne had started first grade, the teacher had set all the pretty children in the front row so that she could marvel at their good hair and pretty light skin. Anne, with her skin the color of strong coffee, found herself at the back of the classroom, isolated so that her darkness wouldn't pollute the brightness of those down front. On becoming a teacher herself, Anne made sure she played no favorites. Didn't she have little Sharon and that girl Fahlia, sitting side by side?