Although I do not identify as Latinx/Hispanic and have straight hair, I immediately felt a kinship with the main character and her relationship with her mother by page 6, and when Marlene thinks about how she is hungry on the next page, that feeling was solidified. The cover conveys the dreamy purple/pink color palette and the urban setting as well as the larger than life presence of her hair (aka the physical manifestation of what she feels sets her apart from everyone else). Any tween who feels awkward can relate to the protagonist's struggles, which are realistically and earnestly depicted.