Review: Tomi Adeyemi’s ‘Children of Blood and Bone’ Builds a World We Need to See

Tomi Adeyemi’s debut YA fantasy novel, Children of Blood and Bone, is ambitious. At a hefty 600 pages, it tells the story of Zélie Adebola and her journey to return magic to her people. This hero’s quest is just the first installment in the bildungsroman trilogy. Already optioned for a movie, the book and its author push back against the erasure of black characters in the genre. Part of what makes the story compelling is the… well… story. Adeyemi regularly mentions in interviews that the idea for the book stems from a desire to rebel against that erasure. Drawing from the Black Lives Matter movement as well as the current political landscape, she creates a world that is largely analogy mixed with African/black mythology. The result is a full, rich world with a believable set of laws, social classes, and *cough, looks at government, cough* institutional oppressions. Because these circumstances are so relatable and accessible, it’s easy to buy into the world. You want to root for Zélie and her companions on the quest because on some level, if you’re a POC, it’s your quest, too. The author uses alternating points of view to move the plot forward. Each chapter is told by a different character. While this allows Adeyemi to withhold and reveal information from the audience and to make clear what each character knows, doesn’t know, and/or is hiding, it left me wanting. The technique absolutely fits the story, but the voices of the characters themselves do not vary enough for us to g…