March 1, 2022
For this month’s booklist, our team have selected some of our recent favourite fantasy titles that feature a Black main character. There’s something for all fantasy lovers here, including children with magic and superpowers, time-travelling adventures, and even a classic body-swap story! Check out the list below for the books’ Accelerated Reader quiz information.
Mia Mayhem series by Kara West, illustrated by Leeza Hernandez
LY | BL 3.5 -4.1 | Little Simon
Mia Macarooney is a regular eight-year-old girl who finds out that she’s A SUPERHERO! Featuring simple language and lots of fun illustrations, the Mia Mayhem chapter books are perfect for emerging readers. And there are six of them on AR!
Oona: The Brave Little Mermaid by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Raissa Figueroa
LY | Quiz # 242148 | BL 3.2 | Katherine Tegen Books
Oona the mermaid and her best friend, Otto, love to search for treasure but often find trouble instead. After all, no proper treasure hunt is without some adventure.
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B Alston
MY | Quiz # 240794 | BL 4.9 | Egmont Children’s Books
Thirteen-year-old Amari, a poor African American girl from the projects, gets an invitation from her missing brother to join the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs and join in the fight against an evil magician.
Maya and the Rising Dark by Rena Barron
MY | Quiz # 241241 | BL 5.2 | Houghton Mifflin
A twelve-year-old girl discovers her father is the keeper of the veil between our world and the Dark. When he goes missing, she’ll need to unlock her own powers and fight a horde of spooky creatures set on starting a war.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia
MY | Quiz # 237813 | BL 4.8 | Disney * Hyperion
Tristan Strong tumbles into the MidPass and, with allies John Henry and Brer Rabbit, must entice the god Anansi to come out of hiding and seal the hole Tristan accidentally ripped in the sky.
The Infinite by Patience Agbabi
MY | Quiz # 240522 | BL 4.5 | Canongate Books
Elle and her fellow Leaplings have the power to jump through time. When Elle receives a message from the future, she must race against time to save the world.
Pet by Emezi Akwaeke
MY+ | Quiz # 237952 | BL 5.7 | Faber and Faber
The children in Lucille have been taught that there are no monsters any more, but when Jam meets Pet she begins to question what she’s been told.
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor
UY | Quiz #242079 | BL 4.2 | Speak
Sunny discovers she has magic powers but needs a crash course in spells and juju to help her friends stop a killer, who has abilities much stronger than theirs.
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
UY | Quiz # 239799 | BL 5.5 | Usborne
At sixteen, Deka is tested on the day of the Ritual of Purity and declared to be a demon. She is forced to leave her village and train to be a warrior. However, in Deka’s new world, nothing is quite as it seems…
Nubia: Real One by L.L McKinney
UY | Quiz # 241838 | BL 2.9 | DC Comics
When Nubia’s friend Quisha is threatened by a boy who thinks he owns the town, Nubia will risk it all to become the superhero society tells her she isn’t.
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
UY | Quiz # 233705 | BL 4.8 | Macmillan Children’s Books
Seventeen-year-old Zélie, her older brother Tzain, and rogue princess Amari fight to restore magic to the land and activate a new generation of magi.
Forever Ends on Friday by Justin A. Reynolds
UY | Quiz # 240609 | BL 4.3 | Macmillan Children’s Books
Jamal’s best friend, Q, doesn’t know he died and is about to die again. He doesn’t know that Jamal tried to save him and that the reason they haven’t been friends for 2 years is because Jamal blames Q for killing his parents.
Empress & Aniya by Candice Carty-Williams
UY | Quiz # 242078 | BL 4.2 | Knights Of
When Empress starts at Aniya’s school, the two are not exactly best friends. But, when the two girls accidentally cast a spell on their sixteenth birthday and end up switching bodies, they quickly realise friendship is the most important magic of all.
Why not get in touch via Twitter to let us know your favourite titles on this topic? If you have some titles you’d like to see quizzed, please use the request a quiz form.
Happy quizzing!