By Kwame Alexander (author) Part of the The Door of No Return Trilogy series
"Set in the segregation-era American South, this outstanding novel-in-verse shares an emotionally charged story of struggle, courage, family and faith."
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Black Star, the second novel in Kwame Alexander’s exceptional The Door of No Return trilogy, moves from 1860s Upper Kwanta in the Asante Kingdom (present-day Ghana) to the 1920s Jim Crow segregation era in the American South. In this dazzling novel- in-verse, Kofi, the central character of The Door of No Return , features as 12-year-old Charley’s grandfather, Nani Kofi. A man who keeps his suitcase by the door ready for when he can return to “his old home, back in Africa” aboard Marcus Garvey’s Black Star Line ship.
Charley is an incredibly-drawn character who declares, “the only thing/I love doing/more than listening/to Nana Kofi’s stories/is playing ball”. She also dreams of being the first female pitcher to play professional baseball — an ambition that’s given wings by Nana Kofi’s inspiring stories of their ancestors’ courage in her present-day context of a racist environment in which she can’t cross the bridge in town: “it’s dangerous over there… for us”.
Charley’s dreams are further heightened when she’s gifted a baseball glove that belonged to a woman who played in a league that started as a result of “colored women in Philadelphia not being allowed to play in other professional leagues”. But when Charley bravely stands up to a bully and challenges him to game, an uncontrollable chain of events is unleashed.
Luminous and compelling, there’s a powerful sense of community, family and coming together throughout the novel: “I love Sunday dinner because…the air around me swells with laughter/because my family can be LOUD/because that means they’re happy/because I feel whole”. Black Star is also laden with powerful — and often moving — wisdom from Nana Kofi (“When your house becomes a cage, it is better to fly away and find another home”), and pitch-perfect in evoking that liminal space between childhood and the teenage transition to adulthood.
Set during the turbulent segregation era, Kwame Alexander weaves a spellbinding story of struggle, determination and the unflappable faith of an American family. Twelve-year-old Charley is set on becoming the first female pitcher to play professional baseball, even if that's a lofty dream for a Black girl in the American South in the 1920s.
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Even so, her grandfather Kofi's thrilling stories about courageous ancestors and epic journeys make it impossible not to dream big. She knows he has so much more to tell, but according to her parents, she isn't old enough to know about certain things, like what happened to Booker Preston that one night in Great Bridge, and why she can never play on the brand-new baseball field on the other side of town.
When Charley challenges a neighbourhood bully to a game at the church picnic, she knows she can win, even with her ragtag team. Then a dispute on the field leads to Charley making a fateful decision, one that will bring consequences she never could have imagined.
‘Powerful, and realistic, this continuing saga offers heartbreaking portrayals of the African American experience’ - Booklist, starred review
‘Kwame Alexander is one of the greats’ - Sarah Crossan
Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, and the New York Times bestselling author of numerous books, including Rebound , shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal, The Crossover , winner of the Newbery Medal, and The Undefeated , winner of the Caldecott Medal. Kwame is also the recipient of several other awards, including the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award and the Coretta Scott King Author Honour.
He is the writer and executive producer of The Crossover TV series, which won a Daytime Emmy Award, and is co-founder of LEAP for Ghana, an international literacy programme.
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The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Black Star and determined it is suitable for children aged 13-18 years old
Black Star features in the following genres: Featured Books for 13+ readers, Featured Books for Young Adults, Stories about Family and Friends, Historical Fiction, Stories in Verse, Children’s / Teenage personal and social topics: Prejudice and intolerance, Recommendations, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, PSHE: Multiculturalism, Diversity and Inclusion, Personal Social Health Economic (PSHE)
Paperback, Hardback. £8.09, down from the £8.99 cover price. In Stock.
Black Star was written by Kwame Alexander and published by Andersen Press an imprint of Andersen Press Ltd
Black Star has 372 pages
Yes it is part of The Door of No Return Trilogy series
£8.09, reduced from £8.99. In Stock.
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