Okorafor, Nnedi: Akata Witch
Akata Witch (2011)
Written by: Nnedi Okorafor
Genre: YA/Fantasy
Pages: 350 (Hardcover)
Why I Read It: This book has been on my radar ever since I got my hands on Who Fears Death and I wondered if Okorafor was coming out with anything new. To my surprise, this came out less than a year later, so I happily plunked it on my wishlist and waited for the right time to get it. Turns out, the right time to get it is at Christmas, as a friend of mine picked it up for me, and when this came to the top of my queue, I was more than happy to read it.
The premise: ganked from publisher's website: Twelve-year-old Sunny lives in Nigeria, but she was born American. Her features are African, but she's albino. She's a terrific athlete, but can't go out into the sun to play soccer. There seems to be no place where she fits. And then she discovers something amazing - she is a "free agent," with latent magical power. Soon she's part of a quartet of magic students, studying the visible and invisible, learning to change reality. But will it be enough to help them when they are asked to catch a career criminal who knows magic too?
Spoilers, yay or nay?: Nay. The book is a short one, and I don't want to ruin any big surprises. However, I kind of make a comparison to Harry Potter in terms of story elements, and that in and of itself could be a kind of spoiler, so if you're paranoid, jump ahead to "My Rating," and everyone else, onward!
It's interesting: the prologue really pulled me in with its use of the first person POV as well as the situation. So much so that when we got to chapter one and I learned the rest of the book would be in third person instead, I was a wee bit disappointed. However, it should be noted that I'm rather partial to the first person POV (past or present tense) but have no problem with third. I point that out because some readers don't like first at all, and I want to quell any protests due to the book opening in first person. It doesn't stay that way. You'll be fine. :) (Though I will note that I think perhaps this book was originally written in the first person, because there are slips here and there to "I" when there shouldn't be).
At any rate, we learn that Sunny is an albino. Her description of herself is actually quite humorous (page 3):
I'm Nigerian by blood, American by birth, and Nigerian again because I live here. I have West African features, like my mother, but while the rest of my family is dark brown, I've got light yellow hair, skin the color of "sour milk" (or so stupid people like to tell me), and hazel eyes that look like God ran out of the right color. I'm albino.
Another description follows on the next page:
I knew I looked like a ghost. All pale-skinned. And I was good at being ghost-quiet. When I was younger, if my father was in the main room drinking his beer and reading his paper, I'd sneak in. I could move like a mosquito when I wanted. Not the American ones that buzz in your ear -- the Nigerian ones that are silent like the dead.
While I haven't read everything in Okorafor's repertoire, one thing I find I love about her writing is her use of description and how it paints a vivid picture in my mind. And sometimes, not a visual picture, but that of a personality. Phrases like "like God ran out of the right color" or "Nigerian ones that are silent like the dead," these descriptions work for me on so many levels: visual, personality, and world-building. The mosquitoes are great, because having never been to Africa, let alone Nigeria, I have no idea of the difference of mosquitoes, but by painting the difference, Okorafor has given me a glimpse into a world that's alien to me, and slightly frightening because of it (I hate mosquitoes. My one consolation is that I can hear them. If I were in Nigeria and found one munching on my arm, I'd freak. Thank you, Okorafor!).
The culture itself is utterly unfamiliar to me. I'll go ahead and say it now: if Okorafor's mis-represented anything or messed something up, I wouldn't know about it even if you hit me with a two-by-four, and even then, I'm likely not to believe it until shown hard evidence. So if you're looking for accuracy, I'm not the reviewer to rely on. However, I'd imagine Okorafor knows her stuff, since her bio indicates she was born to two Nigerian parents.
Breathing in Okorafor's fictional Nigeria certainly had me enchanted. Even the heroine and her troubles had me engaged. And as she made friends and learned more about the Leopard People (of which she was one), I had a funny thought: structure-wise, this is kind of like a Harry Potter set in Nigeria. Mind you, this is NOT a Harry Potter knock-off or any such nonsense. But seeing familiar story-telling elements in an unfamiliar world meant this book really packed a punch. The comparisons that made me smile: Leopard Knocks, which is a part of the world only Leopard People can access (for some reason, I was reminded of Diagon Alley); the juju knives being analogous to wands. And of course, the athletics: Sunny's soccer to Harry's Quidditch. Okay, so soccer itself may not be magical, but the way Sunny plays sure reads that way.
And again, intentional or not, I liked having familiar elements in a story where the world was pretty strange to me. That's one of the great things about storytelling, taking what's familiar and making it different, and Okorafor did a wonderfully fabulous job with that here.
Speaking of world-building: there's so much to love about the culture and magic of the Leopard People. The bright spots, where wealth is an indicator of actual knowledge, and the dark spots, as the monsters that populate this world are rather vivid and frightening. I also found myself wondering, off and on, whether or not this world in Akata Witch might be a prequel world of sorts for Who Fears Death. It may just be that Okorafor is using some of the same mythology/folklore for both works, but using it in different ways, and because I'm not familiar with the mythology/folklore, I can't pick up on that. But the idea that this book could possibly, maybe be a prequel for Who Fears Death is a charming one, even though I'm quite likely very, very wrong in that regard.
Akata Witch has its moments of humor as well: see page 216, when Sunny and her friends visit the Junk Man to select Sunny's juju knife:
Don't be shy. Look, then you buy. But don't touch the things you don't think you should. Especially those parrot feathers. For some reason, people don't know better. Then they get home and wonder why all they want to do is chatter about nonsense.
And as humorous as that is, it's also a neat window into the world Okorafor is creating. Another favorite humorous/unique element was the wasp artist. Page 295:
"I'd smash the thing," Sasha said. "My sister had one when she was small, and when she forgot to give it praise once, it got pissed and stung her. Its sting paralyzes you for ten minutes so you can do nothing but watch it build its 'final masterpiece' and then keep watching as it dramatically dies. The damn things are psychotic."
Fortunately, Sunny always lavishes praise on her wasp artist, and I have to say, I think I want one! :)
One thing to note about this book is that while the ending doesn't feel wholly rushed, it does feel like some things were skipped over and left out. I'm still scratching my head, trying to figure out how Sunny knew to do the right thing at the right time, as it wasn't anything she'd been taught. And there were also things that come up early on in the book that had me seriously thinking that Akata Witch could be the start of a series, despite this book resolving its own story. I don't know if those holes are symptomatic of this being a book slightly on the younger side of YA or not, but if this is a series, I'll be happy to keep reading.
My Rating: Good Read
This book was fast and fun, while also delightful in its world-building and its ability to tip-toe into darker material without making it too adult. For those readers who were put off by the darker elements in Who Fears Death (and let's face it, there were quite a few) should find themselves enjoying the hell out of Akata Witch. The world-building is fun and delightful, and Sunny's a great heroine supported by a great cast. The ending does sneak up on the reader in that you can't help but wonder how it all will resolve before the book ends, but it does resolve. That said, I'm really hoping this is a start of a series, but even if it isn't, I still have Okorafor's backlist to grab, and after reading two of her books, reading more is by no means a hardship. For readers looking for something unique and different in YA fantasy, look no further.
Cover Commentary: The moment I saw this cover, I was hooked. I love the simplicity of it, the way the color rainbows out from the juju knife. It's all just very eye-catching to me, and I'd definitely take a second or third look at this book if I saw it in stores. I can't pinpoint why, but the style of art is a style I've always been drawn to. It's a gorgeous little cover.
Next up: Silver Screen by Justina Robson