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hnmoore 's review for:
Before She Ignites
by Jodi Meadows
I had to think very carefully about this review. The book itself, I loved. But the controversy surrounding it has merit.
This book is exactly what I want in my fantasy world- a diverse cast, magic, and dragons. There was politics and border commentary ("'The Mira Treaty does not permit unwanted assistance. That would be invasion, not aid.' The people shifted uncomfortable. No one liked to hear that their attempts to do good could actually be harmful."). It had anxiety and OCD rep (the anxiety rep was so on point I could feel it in my heart). As a whole, I didn't have much of a problem with the story.
I cannot comment on the black representation (but I will link those who can below). What I will comment on is that the author is white, writing an entire cast of black characters. Diversity in your writing is great! But an all black cast of characters coming from a white author takes away publication opportunities from black authors. In 2016, less than 100 black kidlit authors were published. OUT OF 3200 BOOKS. That is less than 3 percent. THREE PERCENT. And only 25% of books with black characters were written by black authors - "we are not seeing African-American authors and artists being given the same opportunities to tell their own stories." Don't even get me started on other ethnicities. The numbers are absolutely terrible. Black authors deserve to tell their own stories, and every time a white author publishes a story like Before She Ignites is a book that could have gone to a black author to tell their story.
I'm still not 100% sure how to word this and I don't know if I got it across quite right, but this is an important conversation that needs to happen in publishing.
Since I, as a white person, can't comment on the accuracy of the portrayal of black characters in the book, I'm linking those who can.
Positive:: Booktuber Francina Simone (12:31)
Negative:: Reviewer Melody - what black teens need to know, the "strong black woman" trope mess
Book blogger Sanovia - stereotypical characters
L.L. McKinney Twitter thread - comments on accuracy of black character portrayals
Melanie Conklin Twitter thread - on not writing stories that aren't yours to tell
I received an ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
This book is exactly what I want in my fantasy world- a diverse cast, magic, and dragons. There was politics and border commentary ("'The Mira Treaty does not permit unwanted assistance. That would be invasion, not aid.' The people shifted uncomfortable. No one liked to hear that their attempts to do good could actually be harmful."). It had anxiety and OCD rep (the anxiety rep was so on point I could feel it in my heart). As a whole, I didn't have much of a problem with the story.
I cannot comment on the black representation (but I will link those who can below). What I will comment on is that the author is white, writing an entire cast of black characters. Diversity in your writing is great! But an all black cast of characters coming from a white author takes away publication opportunities from black authors. In 2016, less than 100 black kidlit authors were published. OUT OF 3200 BOOKS. That is less than 3 percent. THREE PERCENT. And only 25% of books with black characters were written by black authors - "we are not seeing African-American authors and artists being given the same opportunities to tell their own stories." Don't even get me started on other ethnicities. The numbers are absolutely terrible. Black authors deserve to tell their own stories, and every time a white author publishes a story like Before She Ignites is a book that could have gone to a black author to tell their story.
I'm still not 100% sure how to word this and I don't know if I got it across quite right, but this is an important conversation that needs to happen in publishing.
Since I, as a white person, can't comment on the accuracy of the portrayal of black characters in the book, I'm linking those who can.
Positive:: Booktuber Francina Simone (12:31)
Negative:: Reviewer Melody - what black teens need to know, the "strong black woman" trope mess
Book blogger Sanovia - stereotypical characters
L.L. McKinney Twitter thread - comments on accuracy of black character portrayals
Melanie Conklin Twitter thread - on not writing stories that aren't yours to tell
I received an ARC from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.