Books about teenagers – Equal Opportunity Reader

[REVIEW] The Weight of Blood, by Tiffany D Jackson

(Buy this book.) The blurbs call this a Black version of Stephen King’s Carrie, and they’re mostly right. The author set out to write this as an homage, only shifting the tone of the main character’s terror, not the source. Instead of sheltered, abused, religiously traumatized Carrie White, this book focuses on Madison Washington. MaddyContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Weight of Blood, by Tiffany D Jackson”

[REVIEW] The Windweaver’s Storm(TJ Young and the Orishas Book 2), by Antoine Bandele

A Black woman's hand(my hand) holds up the Kindle cover of The Windweaver's Storm up against the cloudy blue and white sky. The cover shows a teenaged black boy and girl pointing at a giant female figure made of lightning and fire in the distance.

(Buy this book!) One of my most anticipated new reads for 2022 is finally here and let me say the important part first– it did not disappoint! When we last saw teenaged magic student Tomori Jomiloju Young, he had survived remedial magic summer camp, traveled to the spirit realm, made a bargain with Olokun himselfContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Windweaver’s Storm(TJ Young and the Orishas Book 2), by Antoine Bandele”

[REVIEW] The Secret of Gumbo Grove, by Eleanora E Tate

A paperback copy of The Secret of Gumbo Grove lies on a table, surrounded by a crochet project, an open laptop, and a blue and white paper bookmark.

(Buy it from Bookshop here.) Finally I have time to write another book review! Eleven-year old Raisin Stackhouse loves Prince, her younger sisters, and history. She’s a responsible kid who does odd jobs for neighbors in her South Carolina tourist town, so when Effie Pfluggins, the church secretary, calls her over to help clean gravesContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Secret of Gumbo Grove, by Eleanora E Tate”

[REVIEW] Starlion: Thieves of the Red Night, by Leon Langford

A Black woman's hand holds up the colorful anime-style cover of Starlion: Thieves Of The Red Night in front of a office window overlooking the Boston Seaport district.

(Buy it here from Bookshop.) What do you get when you cross Sky High, The Avengers and Yu-Gi-Oh? Toss in a little Harry Potter and Percy Jackson too and apparently, you get this fun middle-grade superhero fantasy novel by indie author Leon Langford. It’s about Jordan Harris, a supernaturally gifted Black boy in an alternateContinue reading “[REVIEW] Starlion: Thieves of the Red Night, by Leon Langford”

[REVIEW] Pashmina, by Nidhi Chanani

A black tablet displays the cover of Pashmina, which depicts an Indian-American teenage girl wrapped in a red and gold pashmina shawl that floats above her and forms a background for the title of the book. The tablet rests on a blue and gold pashmina, with a tiny black statue of Ganesh peeking over the right side of it.

(Buy it on Bookshop.) Something that I’m always learning is that discussions of trauma don’t always have to be epic. There is a time to dive deep into injustice, of course. But sometimes, it’s right to acknowledge something happened, commit to examining its effect on your life and community, and fold that understanding into theContinue reading “[REVIEW] Pashmina, by Nidhi Chanani”

[REVIEW] Girls of Might And Magic, An Anthology by Diverse Books With Magic

PHOTO ID: Black and white e-cover of Girls of Might and Magic displayed on a black Kindle. The device is on a wooden table, resting on a strip of red volcanic rocks and another strip of grass.

(This book is only available on Amazon, and y’all know how I feel about that. Still, as an indie, it gets the rare link-to-Amazon special–find it HERE.) Does anyone remember when it was “weird” for women to read fantasy? I distinctly remember getting into an argument with a total stranger who walked up and startedContinue reading “[REVIEW] Girls of Might And Magic, An Anthology by Diverse Books With Magic”

[REVIEW] Raybearer, by Jordan Ifueko

A Black woman's hand holds the brightly lit black and white Kindle cover of Raybearer in front of a round mirror

(This book seems to be out of stock at Bookshop, beautiful people. To check if it’s been added since this was posted , please click HERE.) There’s a moment in this book where our heroine Tarisai is awoken in the dead of night to go rescue someone. The scene isn’t really unusual in a fantasyContinue reading “[REVIEW] Raybearer, by Jordan Ifueko”

[REVIEW] Dreadnought, by April Daniels

(Buy it from Bookshop) Danny Tozer is an awkward teenage girl surviving the worst part of high school. One day, while hiding behind the mall and painting her toenails, trying desperately to grab a few moments of peace, a superhero fight breaks out overhead. In Danny’s world, these aren’t unusual. What is unusual is theContinue reading “[REVIEW] Dreadnought, by April Daniels”

[REVIEW] The Gatekeeper’s Staff(TJ Young And The Orishas Book 1), by Antoine Bandele

A black and white ebook standing on a cement block, underneath a halo-shaped fluorescent light.

(Find it HERE.) I LOVED THIS. Before I get into the review, let me just say–if you know a pre-teen boy who loves magic and adventure, get him this book. If he’s Black, get him two copies. This is the first book I’ve read in 2021 that made me want to clap and cheer andContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Gatekeeper’s Staff(TJ Young And The Orishas Book 1), by Antoine Bandele”

[REVIEW] The Brave, by James Bird

(Buy it HERE.) 13-year old Collin has an OCD-related condition that makes him compulsively count the letters in every word said to him and blurt it out. This has gotten him bullied out of every school in the area and his distant, alcoholic dad finally can’t take it anymore. He packs up Collin and hisContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Brave, by James Bird”