O P E N I N G H O O K:
I always close my eyes, and today's no exception. It's never made a difference but it's part of the ritual, and I guess it must mean something that I did it even before I knew there was a way for living sirens to listen for their dead. It was one of the first things I learned when I finally found "the network," so despite my lack of results thus far, I close my eyes now too.
(Page 1, US hardcover edition)
“How do you explain being visited by your missing brother in a dream where you took a flying boat to go look at some underwater trains without sounding delusional?”
~AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS
(Sidenote: I THOUGHT I posted this review on here last year, but couldn't find it when trying to make a recommendation yesterday. I found that I DID post a full review on Goodreads, oops! Irregardless, this was one of my top favorite books of 2021 and I'm still obsessed with it and recommend it to kids and teens ALL. THE. TIME. I'm crazy excited to get my hands on the sequel next month!!!!)
AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS is **such** a perfect blend of PERCY JACKSON and HARRY POTTER while still being uniquely its own story. I hope this series gets picked up for film (ETA: I believe it has been optioned at this point! Fingers crossed!!!) because I want everyone to read this spectacular new voice in children's fiction. (Also, if you are looking for a HP replacement, let it be AMARI!)
Amari lives a mostly ordinary life before magic finds her. Her brother Quinton has been missing for about a year, causing her to act out at school, and now she's about to lose her scholarship due to rich bullies. That evening, she receives a briefcase from her brother that will change her life. Amari discovers that magic is real -- vampires, werewolves, mermaids, witches, fairies, and so many more beings of legend have been living alongside humans in plain sight disguised as humans themselves. Upon being invited to try out for the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, Amari discovers that she is a magician, a being feared and reviled in the supernatural community due to the notorious, murderous Night Brothers. Is Amari destined to become a villain, or can magicians also use their magic for good? All Amari wants to do is find her brother, and she'll stop at nothing to save him.
There are so many dynamics at play in this world. B.B. Alston's imagination is bottomless, and ordinary objects such as umbrellas become sources of wonder and awe. Readers are introduced to underwater worlds and stars that can be held in the palm of one's hand and so many more occurrences that are absolutely enchanting. Alston seamlessly slips in discourse on racism and self-identity and finding ones place as well as tests the boundaries of acceptance and changing one's biased perceptions that will resonate with many young readers. There is also so much humor at times that it can be hard not to laugh out loud. There's also a lot of danger and tension, keeping readers turning pages as fast as they can. And of course, there is a huge emphasis on family, on friendship, and on rivalry that will stretch and define many of the books to come. AMARI has a great blend of everything that makes the best children's books stand out from the crowd and become instant classics.
When young readers ask for a new series to read or when readers ask for books like their favorites Percy Jackson and Harry Potter (or even as reading replacements if they want something less well-known), AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS is now my #1 recommendation in middle-grade to hand out to everyone! I'm already salivating over the thought of picking up AMARI AND THE GREAT GAME next month!
Amari lives a mostly ordinary life before magic finds her. Her brother Quinton has been missing for about a year, causing her to act out at school, and now she's about to lose her scholarship due to rich bullies. That evening, she receives a briefcase from her brother that will change her life. Amari discovers that magic is real -- vampires, werewolves, mermaids, witches, fairies, and so many more beings of legend have been living alongside humans in plain sight disguised as humans themselves. Upon being invited to try out for the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, Amari discovers that she is a magician, a being feared and reviled in the supernatural community due to the notorious, murderous Night Brothers. Is Amari destined to become a villain, or can magicians also use their magic for good? All Amari wants to do is find her brother, and she'll stop at nothing to save him.
There are so many dynamics at play in this world. B.B. Alston's imagination is bottomless, and ordinary objects such as umbrellas become sources of wonder and awe. Readers are introduced to underwater worlds and stars that can be held in the palm of one's hand and so many more occurrences that are absolutely enchanting. Alston seamlessly slips in discourse on racism and self-identity and finding ones place as well as tests the boundaries of acceptance and changing one's biased perceptions that will resonate with many young readers. There is also so much humor at times that it can be hard not to laugh out loud. There's also a lot of danger and tension, keeping readers turning pages as fast as they can. And of course, there is a huge emphasis on family, on friendship, and on rivalry that will stretch and define many of the books to come. AMARI has a great blend of everything that makes the best children's books stand out from the crowd and become instant classics.
When young readers ask for a new series to read or when readers ask for books like their favorites Percy Jackson and Harry Potter (or even as reading replacements if they want something less well-known), AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS is now my #1 recommendation in middle-grade to hand out to everyone! I'm already salivating over the thought of picking up AMARI AND THE GREAT GAME next month!
~*~
C O N T E N T R A T I N G S
Content Ratings: highlight between ( ) for details
Romance: --
Language: G ( An agent uses the British slang "bloody.")
Violence: G ( Fights with various hybrid creatures, but nothing graphic or overly violent. And in the past, it is alluded to that the Night Brothers have done horrible things such as drinking victim blood like a vampire would. The novel opens with the main character in the office for shoving another student but accused of assault. (Mentions of student bullying by others here as well). )
Violence: G ( Fights with various hybrid creatures, but nothing graphic or overly violent. And in the past, it is alluded to that the Night Brothers have done horrible things such as drinking victim blood like a vampire would. The novel opens with the main character in the office for shoving another student but accused of assault. (Mentions of student bullying by others here as well). )
Other: PG ( A villain drinks from a goblet and blood drips down his chin. He also threatens to sacrifice and kill the main character. Someone Amari loves is in the ICU during one scene that may trigger some readers who don't like hospital scenes.The main character's brother is missing as the book begins and many presume him to be dead or into something illegal, and so treat Amari and her mother differently. )
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C O V E R D E S I G N:
The cover takes one of the most memorable, most important scenes from the book and brings it to life so captivatingly. If I'd never read the book, I'd instantly be intrigued and want to know what was going on. Having read it, it makes me fondly remember this very important scene.
Also, representation matters! I have given this book to so many kids and teens, and when they identify with the main character, they (and sometimes their parents!) are so incredibly happy to see a Black girl on the cover of the book and it becomes their top choice of the given recommendations. That MATTERS.
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O F F I C I A L I N F O:
Title: AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS
Author: B.B. Alston
Release Date: January 19, 2021
Publisher: Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins
Received: Purchased
Received: Purchased
SUMMARY:
Then Amari discovers a ticking briefcase in her brother’s old closet. A briefcase meant for her eyes only. There was far more to Quinton, it seems, than she ever knew. He’s left her a nomination for a summer tryout at the secretive Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. Amari is certain the answer to finding out what happened to him lies somewhere inside, if only she can get her head around the idea of mermaids, dwarves, yetis and magicians all being real things, something she has to instantly confront when she is given a weredragon as a roommate.
Amari must compete against some of the nation’s wealthiest kids—who’ve known about the supernatural world their whole lives and are able to easily answer questions like which two Great Beasts reside in the Atlantic Ocean and how old is Merlin? Just getting around the Bureau is a lesson alone for Amari with signs like ‘Department of Hidden Places this way, or is it?’ If that all wasn’t enough, every Bureau trainee has a talent enhanced to supernatural levels to help them do their jobs – but Amari is given an illegal ability. As if she needed something else to make her stand out.
With an evil magician threatening the whole supernatural world, and her own classmates thinking she is an enemy, Amari has never felt more alone. But if she doesn’t pass the three tryouts, she may never find out what happened to Quinton.
~*~
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