Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
Ratings16
Average rating3.9
15
Ratings16
Average rating3.9
For fans of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series you are going to love Kwame Mbalia's Tristan Strong. Tristan is a 7th grader dreading being sent to his grandparent's for the summer after suffering a personal tragedy. While there, he discovers fables aren't in the fiction section of life. Most have heard the tales of Greek, Roman, and Egyptian mythology, very few know of African as well as Southern tales. This book does so, and is very entertaining. I loved reading about the characters I heard as a child, so much so I bought it and donated it to my library and will do so with the second in the series as soon as it is available!!
Featured Series
2 primary booksTristan Strong is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2019 with contributions by Kwame Mbalia.
Reviews with the most likes.
As a reader, you know stories have power. Kwame Mbalia gives a refreshing take on that power in this story. This story is about the power of story, sure, but also the power of cooperation, compassion, honesty, and self- confidence.
As a bonus, the underlying myths and legends are African American folk tales that I have not seen in very many other stories.
Great stuff. Would be nice to read out loud to younger kids or put in the hands of middle grades and beyond.
I really enjoyed this book! This was one book I was highly anticipating in 2019 and just now got around to it. This is another middle grade that has some focus on grief and how Tristan navigates that - all within a magical realm that he has to save. I loved how Mbalia gave new life to folk characters. It is very fitting for this story to be a part of Rick Riordan's imprint. I look forward to see where this story goes.
These characters feel just so real! I know they exist just right over there. I don't know that I am ready to leave them just yet. I want to keep holding onto the book, so I can keep holding on to them.
This was a little slow for me but I'm really glad it exists! Tristan is sweet and funny and dealing with some heavy stuff. I appreciated how Mbalia handles collective trauma and memory and culture in a way that's accessible for middle schoolers. I'm excited to give this to tweens and teens!
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