Reviews

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

karrama's review against another edition

5.0

Magical realism in Nigeria! Sunny is all things, but at the same time she is completely different than one might expect. She has a long list of descriptors: albino Nigerian-descendant born in America who returned, only to be teased by the local children, she befriends a boy who lives next to a "free agent" who doesn't play by society's rules. Turns out our athletic, smart heroine is a magic user.

This is a well-written, quickly paced magic school story where the students have to stop the bad guy. Like Sunny, though, it's much more. A very good read.

bluberrybooks's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious reflective 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

I feel like I wrote this review but apparently I haven't. It's been a bit sine I finished this book so it's not fresh. I really enjoyed the pacing, characters and story. I loved the magic system I believe the world building was fantastic. You leaem about everything with the main character. I like how it showed the double standards she has to deal with as a young girl. I almost gave it 4.5 but didn't because the ending felt too all over the place and the way Sunny just saved the day felt unearned and not every believable. I originally gave it 3.5 but I still think highly of this so 4 star for me!  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexism

Moderate: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Body horror, Bullying, and Misogyny

Minor: Police brutality

multilingual_s's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I'm clearly not the target audience but what held me was the feeling that I would have loved it, if I had read it instead of Harry Potter when I was 10. It has everything: magic, creatures, friendship and of course mortal danger.

reneelewis22's review against another edition

3.0

I enjoyed this, but it wasn't a favorite

9queenbee9's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective fast-paced

4.0

linksthesun's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

dangerpronedaphne2023's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious fast-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? No

4.0

kiara_barus's review against another edition

I have better things to read and it was kinda boring.

sloreads_ca's review against another edition

3.0

 Full Review

I picked this book based on an insta recommendation and dove right in without checking the blurb. I knew it was fantasy, I knew Nnedi Okorafor has been really well reviewed and I knew lots of people really liked this book, but I didn’t know it was YA. I generally don’t read YA and if I do it’s usually older teens, so this book wasn’t a great fit for me.

That’s not to say that Okorafor didn’t crush it. Excellent world building and well developed magic. The elements were consistent and creative. The writing was well polished and clear. 

sarahhhht's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

I really liked the system of magic she created here! I thought the West African/Nigerian setting was really interesting and loved seeing that intertwined with the structure and systems of magic.