Thoughts: Abeni’s Song by P. Djèlí Clark

Source: NetGalley – Thank you Tor for the arc!
TL;DR: An absolutely magical adventure novel about a young girl trying to save her family. Highly recommend.

Plot: There are two distinct halves to the story, but it seems natural and reasonable for the setup. I liked that a lot, the plot is solid and well stitched together.
Characters: The characters are each unique and distinct, so everyone feels needed or fills a certain character type.
Setting: The story is half a travel story and half a coming of age to me. The world seems small, but quickly grows in size and the forests of Abeni’s home are well described and shown.
Magic: There is so much of it and it’s so delightful. Down to the blankets and the house Abeni stays in for some time. A lot of it also focuses on spirit magic which is a huge win for me as well.

Thoughts:

Abeni’s Song by P. Djèlí Clark is a fantastic coming of age story about a young girl who sets out to save her family. It’s clearly the first in a series, and I can’t wait to see more of it. The story follows Abeni who watches her entire family and village taken by living ropes, seemingly commanded by Storm Women and a man in a Goat Mask. She is saved by Auntie Asha, the witch who was used to protect their village but seemingly can’t anymore.

I’m going to be honest, the start of this didn’t quite get me. The opening chapter isn’t even from Abeni’s perspective but from another girl as the children of her village are kidnapped by a song. Then we move to Abeni and it’s a bit of a slow start. Then as the Storm Women attack we begin to see magic and once we’re with Auntie Asha? It kicks into full magical mode. Auntie Asha’s everything is magic. The House, the grass, the blankets, and Asha herself is an intriguing and fantastic character. That same level of magic and lovability bleeds into everyone and everything. Abeni is adorable, she acts and thinks like I remember acting and thinking when I was a young girl at times. Her friends she meets along the way all have unique and interesting stories. The darkness of the world around her is hinted at, not completely revealed and having kept up with P. Djèlí Clark’s backlist I know it’s going to hit when it does.

The book is also metaphorically dealing with a lot of big and heavy topics but in ways that I think are well executed. The slave trade, blood diamonds, etc. It’s clear but done in such a way that kids won’t feel spoken down too and adults will also enjoy. This was a great middle grade, one I was hesitant about though this author is a favorite. I honestly should have just known going in I’d love – he never lets me down.

4.5 fighting blankets (the blanket was my favorite character, I’m sorry I loved it)