Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia

Tristan Strong is a teen who recently lost his best friend Eddie to a bus accident. Tristan is given Eddie's journal, where they used to keep stories. Along with losing his friend, Tristan loses a boxing match that disappoints his family, and then he is sent to live on his strict grandparent's farm in Alabama to cope with the loss of his friend. Eventually, while on the farm, Tristan starts to encounter creatures from the journal and goes on an adventure in a parallel world. On his adventure, he finds out he has the power to change reality through his stories and meets all sorts of unusual characters from Brer Rabbit, High John, Gum Baby, to John Henry. The story "is rife with action" and "offers a richly realized world, a conversational, breezy style, and a satisfying conclusion that leaves room for sequels." (M. Del Ngro, 2019)

Critical Analysis

The story is told in the first person and follows a logical sequence. Tristan's character is vulnerable, caring, and courageous. Themes include grief and courage. Similarly, Tristan is an authentic character without stereotype extensions and the setting is consistent with contemporary times. The story contains cultural details regarding African American folktales and West African mythological connections like characters, spiritual traditions, and beliefs. The overall quality invites analysis and reflection on connections like traditional literature folktales, slavery, and enslaved persons in the United States' history. Kwame Mbalia received the 2020 Coretta Scott King Award honor book for Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky.

The book's strength is that it uses a traditional literature folktale and turns it into a contemporary story. The weakness is that readers may feel the story is too long. Readers may enjoy Amari and the Night Brothers by African American author B.B. Alston with a similar fantasy adventure overtone.

Reference

Del Negro, J. M. (2019, October). Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky. School Library Journal. Retrieved June 19, 2022, from https://www.slj.com/review/tristan-strong-punches-a-hole-in-the-sky

Mbalia, K. (2019). Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky. Disney HYPERION.