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A review by queer_bookwyrm
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor
adventurous
mysterious
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? No
4.0
4 ⭐ CW: bullying, fantasy violence, death of a child mention, mutilation mention, physical abuse/corporal punishment, swarming insects
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor is book one in the Nsibidi Scripts series. This book was great! This is another of those books I wish had been around when I was in middle school. This would honestly make a great replacement for HP if you need Magic School recs.
We follow Sunny, a girl born in the US to Nigerian/Igbo parents, but raised in Nigeria, and is albino. Sunny starts making friends with a boy named Orlu after he helps stop bullies from hurting her. Orlu has another friend named Chichi who doesn't attend school, is very direct, antagonistic, and mysterious about her age. When Chichi and Orlu tell her about juju, she discovers she's like them: a Leopard Person, a person with magical abilities using natural talents and powders and symbols and such. Sunny gets to join Orlu and Chichi in what is basically juju school, but Sunny is at a huge disadvantage since she's the only one who didn't grow up knowing about any of it.
I loved the group we got. We meet an African-American boy named Sasha who was sent to Nigeria for bad behavior and will be studying with them. This whole group was about balancing each other out: Sasha and Chichi being the hard headed, firery ones; Orlu and Sunny the more calm, sensible, and quiet ones. Together they make an Oha coven, and they are tasked with something no teen should have to deal with alone.
I loved the world-building in this! So many cool and interesting things! In Leopard People world, knowledge is the most valuable thing and so as you learn new things you earn chittim (various precious metals that serve as currency). Since Sunny is completely ignorant of Leopard People ways, she earns big chittim. Each Leopard Person has innate magical abilities they can utilize without powders or using a juju knife. The abilities usually correlate to the person's physical appearance, often a disability or deformity, and is seen as a good thing. I loved the concept of spirit faces and I hope we learn more about them throughout the series. I want Della the Art Wasp! So tiny and desperate for praise.
It was interesting reading about the way Native Nigerians view African-Americans. The word Akata in the title refers to Black Americans or foreign-born blacks as bush animals, and is very rude. Since Sunny is also albina she gets called a witch a lot, and she has taken these names back. I want more African fantasy!
Definitely looking forward to Akata Warrior and to Okorafor's other books.
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor is book one in the Nsibidi Scripts series. This book was great! This is another of those books I wish had been around when I was in middle school. This would honestly make a great replacement for HP if you need Magic School recs.
We follow Sunny, a girl born in the US to Nigerian/Igbo parents, but raised in Nigeria, and is albino. Sunny starts making friends with a boy named Orlu after he helps stop bullies from hurting her. Orlu has another friend named Chichi who doesn't attend school, is very direct, antagonistic, and mysterious about her age. When Chichi and Orlu tell her about juju, she discovers she's like them: a Leopard Person, a person with magical abilities using natural talents and powders and symbols and such. Sunny gets to join Orlu and Chichi in what is basically juju school, but Sunny is at a huge disadvantage since she's the only one who didn't grow up knowing about any of it.
I loved the group we got. We meet an African-American boy named Sasha who was sent to Nigeria for bad behavior and will be studying with them. This whole group was about balancing each other out: Sasha and Chichi being the hard headed, firery ones; Orlu and Sunny the more calm, sensible, and quiet ones. Together they make an Oha coven, and they are tasked with something no teen should have to deal with alone.
I loved the world-building in this! So many cool and interesting things! In Leopard People world, knowledge is the most valuable thing and so as you learn new things you earn chittim (various precious metals that serve as currency). Since Sunny is completely ignorant of Leopard People ways, she earns big chittim. Each Leopard Person has innate magical abilities they can utilize without powders or using a juju knife. The abilities usually correlate to the person's physical appearance, often a disability or deformity, and is seen as a good thing. I loved the concept of spirit faces and I hope we learn more about them throughout the series. I want Della the Art Wasp! So tiny and desperate for praise.
It was interesting reading about the way Native Nigerians view African-Americans. The word Akata in the title refers to Black Americans or foreign-born blacks as bush animals, and is very rude. Since Sunny is also albina she gets called a witch a lot, and she has taken these names back. I want more African fantasy!
Definitely looking forward to Akata Warrior and to Okorafor's other books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Violence and Physical abuse
Minor: Child death and Kidnapping