The Darkest Child follows the story of Tangy Mae Quinn, one of nine (later, ten) of Rozelle Quinn's children. She's the darkest out of her siblings, hence the name of the novel, yet she is also the only one determined to make something of herself.

Early on, we see the evil ways of her mother, Rozelle (sometimes referred to as Rosie). She's a very light woman, so light that she could pass for white, and feeds off of the colorism that has plagued the black community since colonial times. So much, that she places those same issues onto her children; especially Tangy. 

The family lives in the fictional town of Pakersfield, Georgia, in 1958. The author tells a story of the effects childhood trauma, racism, and pain over the course of three years. The book follows Tangy as she tries her best to navigate it all, with little to no help from those around her.

The story is no easy read. In graphic detail, Delores Phillips gives the reader a front-row seat at the abuse and apathy Rozelle shows to not only her children, but everyone else around her. She molds Rozelle into a  antagonist I've never seen before: a stoic, dark, and twisted character that you can't bring yourself to care for no matter how hard you may try. 

She did a wonderful job at giving each character outside of Tangy and Rozelle a voice of their very own. I found myself sympathizing with every single one of them for what they've had to endure. By the end of the novel, I felt satisfied with almost everyone's respective endings, with the exception of Sam

who is never to be seen again after allegedly burning down Market Street

, Mushy's boyfriend back home

who was said to have proposed to her back up in Cleveland, yet Mushy randomly returns to Georgia and never mentions him as if it never happened

, and Jeff Stallings

a boy from school Tangy liked who also liked her, who moved out of Pakersfield without even bothering to take down her address to write her a letter

.

This was Ms. Phillips' only novel before her death in 2014. I'm desperately hoping that it be turned into a movie or even a miniseries someday so that everyone can know about it.