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purplepenning's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Bullying, and Child death
Moderate: Body shaming, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Kidnapping, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Death, Murder, and Violence
Serial killer preying on children for ritual murders; corporal punishmentlanid's review
adventurous
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Body horror, Bullying, Body shaming, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, and Violence
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Akata Witch is the tale of a world within a world and a girl who doesn’t know her heritage or the mysterious power it brings. This sort of story may sound familiar, but at every opportunity Okorafor departs from the expected to build a magical coming-of-age story that is entirely its own. Sunny and her friends are given an impossible task, are immersed in an impossible world and it is beguiling, beautiful, and mesmerizing. I think it might be one of my favorite magical YA settings ever.
Let’s start with Sunny. First of all, Sunny proves that it’s possible to have an extraordinary destiny without being an orphan. She is exceptional in some ways – as most protagonists are. The most obvious is these is her albinism. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of another book featuring a protagonist with albinism, and a Black person at that. I applaud Okorafor for her choice! But Sunny’s albinism is about more that representation. There’s an empowering reason for it in the story and that matters most of all. Sunny is never defined by any of her individual traits, even though they weigh on her at times. Okorafor does an excellent job guiding her protagonist through a journey of self-discovery.
Sunny, Orlu, Chichi, and Sasha are a dynamic group and it’s fun to follow their journey. I appreciated the use of mentors and I appreciated the separate shining personalities. I didn’t feel we had too many tropes among them, and those that tried to surface were pushed aside. These characters are defined by themselves, not the role they play in the book, and that’s fantastic. It’s refreshing to see a group with a purpose, rather than an individual with a destiny.
I adore Okorafor’s writing. In Akata Witch, I especially appreciated her use of weather. Rain, sun, storm – all of them bring so much to the story’s atmosphere in a way I appreciate with most books, but am astounded with here. The climatic scene near the end of the book was astounding and immersive and I was enthralled. There are some writers who are so talented at atmospheric writing that from the first few sentences, you are transported. Okorafor is one of those authors.
Akata Witch is a fantastic dive into magic from a non-Western European perspective. The action scenes have amazing pacing, the characters jump off the page, and the writing is vibrant. I enjoyed this book so much – it’s definitely destined for my personal library. I’d recommend folks look past the ages of the main quartet – this book never felt catered to younger readers – and dive in. It’s wonderful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Child death, Bullying, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexism, and Blood
Minor: Abandonment
kateloveswords's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Cursing, Animal death, Bullying, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, Alcohol, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Kidnapping, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Xenophobia
foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
An amazing world full of magic, excited to see this series continue.
I swear third time is finally the charm, I'm continuing with this series! Akata Witch is about 12 year old Sunny who stumbles into the Leopard world of magic. Sunny ends up forming a coven with three other kids who become best friends through the trials of magic.
This world is both amazing and dangerous. While the kids are learning how to channel their powers, there is a magician who is stalking the town kidnapping and killing kids. Sunny and her coven will end up being the last defense against the evil this magician is trying to call. I really enjoy this world and I love Sunny's character. I love how much she loves soccer and enjoys learning about her powers. Really excited to see what these kids get up to in the next book!
Rep: Albino Nigerian-American female MC, Nigerian-American male side character, Nigerian female side character, Nigerian male side character with dyslexia, Nigerian female side character with severe scoliosis.
CWs: Bullying, death, violence, blood, misogyny, sexism. Moderate: child death, child abuse, kidnapping, murder, body shaming, racism/colorism, domestic abuse, suicide, racial slurs.
____________________________________________________________
I still love this book! I am still uncomfortable with physically punishing kids for mistakes tho. Sorry not sorry have not changed my mind about that.
I loved Sunny and her inquisitive disposition. Learning about Leopard powers alongside her was so much fun as she keeps digging for answers. I loved that she developed real friendships with her three other coven mates. Several times I got a chosen ones type vibe from them. While they are reckless at times, they're also incredibly powerful. I really want to read the rest of this series so I can see what else Sunny and her friends uncover!
____________________________________________________________
I really enjoyed this story about magic, friendship and power!
One thing that did bother me was the amount of times the kids were physically punished for not listening or doing something wrong. I just can't get behind that especially since these kids were like 12-14 yrs old!! Like why?
I really loved the magic and adventure this story had. It was easy to follow what happened and I loved all of the tribal references that were added. The setting of Nigeria was magical and realistic simultaneously. The story came alive with Okorafor's distinct story telling voice. I loved how adventurous and rebellious Sunny and her friends were. Their coven was well balanced between their personalities.
I hope we get to learn more about Sunny's family and the Leopard world in the second book!
I swear third time is finally the charm, I'm continuing with this series! Akata Witch is about 12 year old Sunny who stumbles into the Leopard world of magic. Sunny ends up forming a coven with three other kids who become best friends through the trials of magic.
This world is both amazing and dangerous. While the kids are learning how to channel their powers, there is a magician who is stalking the town kidnapping and killing kids. Sunny and her coven will end up being the last defense against the evil this magician is trying to call. I really enjoy this world and I love Sunny's character. I love how much she loves soccer and enjoys learning about her powers. Really excited to see what these kids get up to in the next book!
Rep: Albino Nigerian-American female MC, Nigerian-American male side character, Nigerian female side character, Nigerian male side character with dyslexia, Nigerian female side character with severe scoliosis.
CWs: Bullying, death, violence, blood, misogyny, sexism. Moderate: child death, child abuse, kidnapping, murder, body shaming, racism/colorism, domestic abuse, suicide, racial slurs.
____________________________________________________________
I still love this book! I am still uncomfortable with physically punishing kids for mistakes tho. Sorry not sorry have not changed my mind about that.
I loved Sunny and her inquisitive disposition. Learning about Leopard powers alongside her was so much fun as she keeps digging for answers. I loved that she developed real friendships with her three other coven mates. Several times I got a chosen ones type vibe from them. While they are reckless at times, they're also incredibly powerful. I really want to read the rest of this series so I can see what else Sunny and her friends uncover!
____________________________________________________________
I really enjoyed this story about magic, friendship and power!
One thing that did bother me was the amount of times the kids were physically punished for not listening or doing something wrong. I just can't get behind that especially since these kids were like 12-14 yrs old!! Like why?
I really loved the magic and adventure this story had. It was easy to follow what happened and I loved all of the tribal references that were added. The setting of Nigeria was magical and realistic simultaneously. The story came alive with Okorafor's distinct story telling voice. I loved how adventurous and rebellious Sunny and her friends were. Their coven was well balanced between their personalities.
I hope we get to learn more about Sunny's family and the Leopard world in the second book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Sexism, Blood, Violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Child death, Suicide, Body shaming, Murder, and Racism
vivianw's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia
obviousthings's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I really liked the first 80% of the book, especially the worldbuilding. However, the ending kind of fell flat for me. Major spoilers:
The big final battle was really anticlimactic. It felt like Sunny didn't even try to help in the fight with Black Hat, and then she defeated Ekwensu with hardly any effort.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Misogyny
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Cannibalism
booksandtea997's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, and Bullying
Moderate: Body shaming and Racism
321zeggy's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Death, Kidnapping, and Violence
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