Fantasy Round Up

Back in 2016, a Very Famous Author took exception to my comment that my students weren't reading a lot of historical fiction and reached out to the board of the Cybils Awards to try to have me removed as the organizer of the realistic fiction division. Of course, at the time, I apologized profusely, amended my post, and made nice with this author so I could keep my position and not get scorched on social media. 

Today, I think I would say, very nicely, "Bite me".

I'm usually VERY polite with my reviews. I could be snarky... oh, boy, could I be snarky. But that's not nice. I blog so that other librarians and teachers know a little bit about the books. Books that aren't right for my students might be perfect for their students. If you read the blog frequently, you know the tells when I'm not buying a book, but they aren't anything an author could quote on social media as something mean I have said. 

Since 2016, I have not reviewed or bought any of this author's books, although I've read a few. They were never all that popular with my students, so I feel good about this choice. But... the nerve. Does it help anyone if I don't report what actual middle grade readers are reading? I didn't say "This book sucks. Nobody reads historical fiction. Why is it even published?" No. I said that MY students weren't reading a lot of it, so if I purchased it, it wouldn't be a good use of my limited budget. 

So, when I say that my students are  not reading a lot of the fabulous culturally connected books that are being published, this doesn't mean that NO ONE should buy them. It just means that I may not. I do buy SOME fantasy ever year, and to make sure that I get the books that will appeal most to my students who do read fantasy, I try to at least look at most of the books. That's my job.

There will probably be more fantasy round ups in the future, and I hope they help people who do need to buy more fantasy books than I need to. 

Khan, M. T. Amir and the Jinn Princess
July 23, 2024 by Little Brown Young Readers
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Amir Rafiq is a possible heir to his Baba's (father) brick making fortune in Lahore, Pakistan... if his father doesn't favor his older brother Ashar or sister Alishba. It's possible he might, because Amir is rather entitled and spoiled, and has been getting in trouble in school and not doing well in classes ever since the disappearance of his mother nearly a year ago. He takes some comfort in his father's mother, Dadi (who never liked his mother), although he is rarely allowed to spend time with his mother's mother, Nani. When Dadi arranges a marriage for Baba, Amir is understandably upset. He also isn't thrilled with the fact that he has to spend the summer out at the family farm. When local residents protest the expansion of the brick factory, which is going to demolish a lot of a forest, Amir is interest but appalled to find out that factory workers have been going missing in a fashion very similar to his mother. He's brought home a cat that followed him on his way from school, and is very surprised to find that it isn't, in fact, a cat. It's Shamsa, a jinn who is glad that Amir gave her sweets, and wants to help him prove that his destiny isn't set in stone. Before he knows it, the two are sneaking past the family guards, getting on the jinn train, and traveling to the Kagra Kingdom. Once there, Shamsa has another surprise; she is actually the 14th jinn princess, and is entering a competition to hopefully become heir to the throne. This will involve contests in physicality, artistry, and diplomacy, but if Amir helps her with the contest, she will help him find his mother. Since she's not in the human world, it seems likely that she has slipped through a portal and is stuck in the jinn world. Amir is a big help in the competitions, but when he is looking for his mother, he finds out some alarming truths about the Rafiq brick company. Not only are workers treated horribly, but the role that the company (as well as Shamsa's main competitor, her sister Golnaz) is not something that Amir can support. Can the two work together to insure a better future for both worlds? And will Amir be able to find out what has become of his mother?
Strengths: Khan constructs excellent fantasies that are easy to remember and involve some novel elements, which is very rare in middle grade fantasy. Instead of a quest, we have a competition to be a jinn heir, with different competitions that aren't related to a magical school. Amir and Shamsa's relationship is interesting, and while they do help each other out, there's also some obfuscation that causes tension. The tie between the human business of Rafiq's bricks and the jinn world is very interesting, and the inclusion of the treatment of workers was fascinating. Amir, who is not the most pleasant character at the beginning of the book, does have his eyes opened to the way other people have to live, and the challenges that they face, and this makes him a better person.
Weaknesses: It was not necessary to kill off Amir's mother to involve him in the jinn world. I'm may buy this book, since I enjoyed it, but I'm just not sure I have the readers for it. There are so many fantasy books, and I have hundreds and hundreds gathering dust on my shelves. Khan at least writes stand alones instead of series, which does make this one a good one to purchase.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed this author's Nura and the Immortal Palace, or other fantasy adventures that address environmental and social issues, like Smith's Where the Black Flowers Bloom, Ryan's Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs, or Young's The Healer of the Water Monster.

Elle, J. A Whisper of Curses (Park Row Magic Academy #2)
July 9, 2024 by Bloomsbury Children's Books
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

This is a worthy sequel to the first book, A Taste of Magic, which has circulated well in my  library with students who like to read about magical schools. The Park Row Magick Academy is deep in renovations that were funded by Kyana's winning baking competition, but things go wrong with the Availables, and Kyana manifests some odd symptoms. Will Dr. Minzy, of Minzy Industrial have the answer to the odd occurrneces? I can see one more book in the series to address how everyone settles back into the school when renovations are completed. 

Okogwu,Tọlá. Onyeka and the Heroes of the Dawn (Onyeka  #3)

May 14, 2024 by Margaret K. McElderry Books
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Onyeka and four other students from the Academy of the Sun are on their way to London in the supersonic jet Gyrfalcon to retrieve a boy who is a Solari. Tobi's parents are dead, and he's with foster parents in Bristol, but when Onyeka, Adanna, Hassan, Zahrah, and Niyi arrive, they have to hunt him down, since people have broken into the house and attacked the adults. They get him back to Nigeria, where he enjoys being with Onyeka and her family. Onyeka's father is a bit demanding, and when he wants her to take more responsibility, she fights back, but eventually takes the test to become an Olori. When Nigeria's solar technology is failing, she is called in to help, but wants to quit after she messes up. It also upsets her that Tobi will be leaving her family to go into foster care elsewhere. When she finds out that Laamu-Ezeoba has evil plans for Tobi, she has to look within herself to harness her powers rather than giving in to her self-doubt. 

This could be the end to the series, but there also could be another book. Trilogies are perfect, so I'm okay if Okogwu moves on to writing different series. My students don't usually want to commit to more than three books; it takes an entire quarter for them to read a trilogy, and if readers start a series in 6th grade as it's being published, they may age out of a longer series before it is completed.