Well, one good thing about taking a graduate course that requires the reading of two novels per week is that I'm back into the reading groove and have been encountering YA books that I never would have picked up or come across if I hadn't been forced by way of assignments to chose them. This week we did Fantasy and instead of the usual fare, I picked up this book which was fascinating and about JuJu magic, something I knew little about but am certainly intrigued by. This book is packed with imagination, something you all know that I admire. Enjoy.
(Viking, 2011)
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Sunny is a bit of an outsider in her Igbo community in
Nigeria. As she states in the beginning of the novel, she confuses people. She
was born in America, then her parents returned to Nigeria. So she is American
and Igbo. But neither of those qualities are what truly make her an outsider,
being an albino is mostly to blame for that. In Igbo communities, albinos are
thought of as people who are half ghost, having one part of themselves existing
in the spirit world.
Sunny never believed that superstition, at least not until
she sees a vision of the end of the world in the flame of a candle. With the
help of her mysterious new friends, Orlu, Chichi and Sasha, she begins to learn
the secrets hidden within her community, and in her own past. Perhaps the
superstitions are more than simple folklore? Perhaps Sunny really does have a
connection to the spirit world? But will her connection, and the juju magic
that she learns really be enough to put an end to the Black Hat killer's murder
spree or prevent the end of the world from actually happening?
This was a unique kind of fantasy novel, one that was so full of effortless imagination. Nothing felt forced or over-explained. There were moments where I wished it would have gone into more explanation, but I also enjoyed how it left a lot for the reader to imagine. I can't wait to read the next book in the series.
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