BfK 10 – 14 Middle/Secondary continued New talent Pet HHHHH


Akwaeke Emezi ,Faber & Faber, 204pp, 9780571355112, £7.99, pbk


There are no monsters in Lucille; at


least not any more after the


revolution. Now the angels keep order – angels drawn from the community. But what does


a


monster look like? And why do the angels found on the pages of old books look so monstrous? What happens when you


forget the


monsters? These are questions that trouble fifteen year old Jam. Then Pet arrives, drawn from a painting by Jam’s mother. Is Pet an angel – or a monster? This is a powerful and disturbing


narrative told in a voice that is both immediate and reflective as all the best allegories are. Lucille is a community that is inspirational; here a young person can find an identity that is their own – as Jam has. Here there are loving families with a strong sense of wellbeing and togetherness.


Lucille is a


happy, safe place. Or is it? There is a history, one in which the adults had a part, but which, in a belief that


its horrors should not be


remembered, is being quietly buried in favour of a golden present. The result is that Jam, alive, intelligent, independent is also naive. What is a monster? And suppose it wears an angel’s face? The greatest danger in any community is complacency. Young people reading this will be drawn in by the characters, by the


situation, by the emotions.


about and she peoples this story with the facts of everyday theatrical life, the glamorous and the unglamorous, and the figures of its fiction: a prima donna soprano; a long suffering director; and overlooked bit players, including the prima donna’s abused daughter, who may yet become a star. But surely even this is not the world as we know it, for here a chandelier can explode and pepper our whoever heroine with shards and she not only survives but is given an extraordinary gift by the apparent catastrophe. It is a story rich in allusion, maybe even to that most wonderful of films of theatre life, Les Enfants Du Paradis. There are name games and plot puzzles for the attentive and quick witted reader; and this gradually and compellingly unfolded tale is also rich in Andersen- like colours of light and dark: where the kind and generous, however humble, and the selfish and cruel, however exalted, get their just deserts. CB


But they will not be presented with a resolution that is black and white; it will be satisfying but uncomfortable. Angels, like Justice, are not there to deal in “fairness”, they are as Pet says “hunters” and as all mystics have known are truly frightening. Humans are not angels – there is an emotional response but


even compromise can be


uncomfortable. Emezi has shaped a story to encourage thought and reflection – even discussion among young readers. This is a novel that presents powerful messages which are conveyed through lively language


and imaginative dialogue, images and


through strong


characterisation of both the young protagonists and the adults. The result is an absorbing, powerful, multilayered read that is not just a lesson but an experience. FH


Some Places More than Others HHHHH


Renée Watson illus. Shadra Stickland, Bloomsbury, 214pp 978 15266 13684 £6.99 pbk


Award-winning author, Renée


Watson’s new novel is a masterful and warm-hearted paean to family life and discovering who you are. Amara lives with her loving parents


in Oregon. A long-awaited baby sister is on the way. But Amara wants to broaden her horizons and is desperate to go to New York for her twelfth birthday as she has never met her Grandpa Earl and her cousins, Nina and Ava. At first her parents are totally opposed to the idea until Amara comes home from school with a project to find out about her family origins and her mother realises this might be just the opportunity to mend a long-standing rift between Amara’s father


and


grandfather. Amara immediately starts planning all the places she would like to see but when she arrives is rather taken aback at the hustle, bustle and noise of New York. Her cousins are not quite as friendly as she thought they


30 Books for Keeps No.239 November 2019


would be either and resent having to take their younger cousin sightseeing. And the estrangement between her father and grandfather does not appear to be improving. But as Amara travels round Harlem


her eyes are opened and she begins to realise the much wider significance of where she has come from, her roots and her cultural heritage as she visits museums, statues and local restaurants. But it is in her Grandfather’s home that she makes the most surprising discoveries about her father as a young man and hears first-hand the family stories about her


legendary Grandma, Grace.


Most importantly Amara learns that families are not always perfect and that forgiveness and acceptance are what matters. This is an exceptional story of a


young girl’s coming of age, finding out about her roots and her own place in her family, told with economy and grace. It is both touching and thought- provoking yet never feels preachy.


It


packs a powerful punch. The suitcase project is a brilliant idea too and I would suggest every school should own their own copy of this book. JC


Cyborg Cat and the Night Spider


HHHH


Ade Adepitan, ill. Carl Pearce, 232pp, 9781787414037, £5.99, pbk


This superhero series accounts the adventures of the young Adedoyin and his friends, The Parsons Road Gang. Set in their school in London, the story tells of how the gang have to stand up to bullying and stick together to help their friend as he adapts to the changing nature of his superpowers. Adedoyin wears a calliper on his leg


due to the effects of polio as a baby, and it helps him to leap around in goal and to earn the nickname Cyborg Cat. There’s nothing he can’t do: it gives him the strength to keep up with his friends and to sprint around school between


lessons, ill-prepared bumping into bystanders. However,


Adedoyin is getting older, and heavier, and his leg won’t be able to keep supporting him, despite the calliper. He finds himself slowing down and soon has to come to terms with the fact that the Cyborg Cat will need to use a wheelchair. Meanwhile, a local graffiti artist


has taken against the Cyborg Cat and threatening artworks appear around town. The Parsons Road Gang are faced with the challenge of making sure Ade misses out on nothing, despite the chair, while standing up to the insults of bullies and uncovering the identity of the evil graffiti artist. A tough task to say the least but, fortunately, the gang always live by their motto (‘always stick together’) and the Cyborg Cat knows he can count on them to go to the greatest of lengths to support him. Though the story features


extraordinary heroics and depicts vibrant characters fighting for good or


evil, its focus is really upon


the everyday challenges faced by Adedoyin, as he adjusts to new mobility challenges. Ade’s father refuses to accept his son’s ‘weaknesses’ and locks the wheelchair away, and there are children


in Ade’s class happy


to use callipers and wheelchairs as ammunition for insults. Most affecting is Ade’s love of sport and the need to come to terms with the fact that he can’t do what he has before. As the


story explores there is nothing that


these


personal issues, it retains throughout an extremely clear message:


and positive


Adedoyin can’t overcome, thanks to his determination and the kindness of his friends. The story is heavily autobiographical and many of Ade Adepitan’s childhood memories


are shared. for


might easily dismiss this approach as a vanity project


his accomplishments


celebrity author, but the truth is that Adepitan’s story is truly inspirational, and


are


extraordinary. Moreover, the quality of storytelling here is very good. It succeeds in placing superheroism alongside


everyday problems, to


highlight the experiences of children with disabilities and to confront prejudices. Yes, the Cyborg Cat faces extreme challenges, but the defining elements of his growing-up are the jokes he shares with his friends and the love he shares with his family, and these are also the most enjoyable parts of the book. SD


M is for Movement (Aka Through


Humans Can’t Eat Golf balls) HHHH


Innosanto Nagara, Seven Stories Press, 96pp, 978-1609809355, £15.99 pbk


describing his own


experiences and those of his friends Nagara indicates not only the story of the movement for social change in Indonesia but also offers something of a blueprint for those seeking social change everywhere. The book begins with an indication


of how the writer was shaped by his upbringing as the child of a dissident. He also sets his own experiences in the wider context of rising activism throughout the world; describing this formative period as ‘a political storm’. Nagara shows how experiences


at school were an influence too, relating a story in which a classmate (Sulaiman), recruits the of


neighbourhood friends equally effective


support to help


him deal with a bullying incident. Sulaiman finds the same approach proves


when


dealing with larger scale bullying as a community leader. Through these anecdotes the principle of solidarity is introduced. Other key concepts such as corruption, nepotism and collusion are explained simply and clearly in relation to events in Indonesia. Specific instances of injustice


linked to corruption by the state are outlined – including the misdirection of government funds for drugs during a medical epidemic and indifference to the fate of the poor when a landslide triggered by a dam building


Sceptics another


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