born a crime chapter 10

I think that this chapter has a lot to do with Noah's biracial identity and how his post-puberty interest in girls fits in. Noah's early experiences with girls are unsuccessful for a number of reasons. For one thing, he seems to lack confidence. He passively accepts that Johanna would prefer to be Leonardo's girlfriend, and he cannot imagine that Zaheera might return his feelings even though there are hints that she likes him as well. He is too shy to try to talk with Babiki, which leads to the confusion about what language she speaks. However, Noah's insecurity is also rooted in racial and socio-economic factors. Everyone assumes he and Johanna should be together simply because they resemble each other in skin tone. If Noah had more flexibility to choose a girl based on what they had in common, he might have found someone more compatible who would have returned his feelings. His sense that he is unattractive and does not have fashionable clothes also plays into his insecurity. Nonetheless, Noah does learn lessons from these early romantic experiences. He comes to see the value in being brave, and also in being genuinely interested in the women he dates.