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A review by chirson
The Dark Fantastic: Race and the Imagination from Harry Potter to the Hunger Games by Ebony Elizabeth Thomas
4.0
I read this book courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for a review.
I am not entirely sure that I found each example used by Thomas to advance her argument equally persuasive: for instance, is Gwen the best choice for who/what haunts Merlin (and if not, just acknowledge it and make your point regardless)? In addition, I didn't really enjoy the chapter on Harry Potter, which felt incomplete and cut short while still containing what seemed to me to be a too long and somewhat misleading preamble concerning the author's own fandom life (I was in HP fandom for part of the period described by the Author and it was far larger and fragmented than she seems to present it; furthermore, many BNFs fell from grace quickly and painfully for a variety of offences). But that does not detract from the great points of her central premise concerning the role of the Black (girl) character in the Dark Fantastic Cycle. I was on my Kindle when my 12 yo Nibling asked me what I was reading.
"It's a book about how Black characters are represented in films and TV shows," I simplified.
"Oh, they die first," Nibling replied, and I am *not* making this up.
I found Thomas's analysis captivating and lucid, and thought-provoking, and a supremely enjoyable read as a piece of media criticism. I hope it will spark many debates and arguments.
I am not entirely sure that I found each example used by Thomas to advance her argument equally persuasive: for instance, is Gwen the best choice for who/what haunts Merlin (and if not, just acknowledge it and make your point regardless)? In addition, I didn't really enjoy the chapter on Harry Potter, which felt incomplete and cut short while still containing what seemed to me to be a too long and somewhat misleading preamble concerning the author's own fandom life (I was in HP fandom for part of the period described by the Author and it was far larger and fragmented than she seems to present it; furthermore, many BNFs fell from grace quickly and painfully for a variety of offences). But that does not detract from the great points of her central premise concerning the role of the Black (girl) character in the Dark Fantastic Cycle. I was on my Kindle when my 12 yo Nibling asked me what I was reading.
"It's a book about how Black characters are represented in films and TV shows," I simplified.
"Oh, they die first," Nibling replied, and I am *not* making this up.
I found Thomas's analysis captivating and lucid, and thought-provoking, and a supremely enjoyable read as a piece of media criticism. I hope it will spark many debates and arguments.