Published by Razorbill

Summary:  Nana’s in trouble again for lying, even though she swears her story about how her teacher’s toupee disappeared is true.  Her parents have had enough, however, and they decide to send her to stay with family in Ghana for the summer.  There she meets relatives and learns about the trickster spider Ananse who exchanges favors and magic for stories.  When Nana, her cousin, and a classmate discover men who are destroying a local forest by stripping it of magic, they end up working with Ananse to defeat the villains and save the forest.  As a reward, Nana gets a wish granted and is happy that her stories are finally believed by family members in both Ghana and the U.S.  Includes four pages of additional information about Ananse.  256 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  This graphic novel cleverly weaves together a realistic family story and folklore. The artwork is gorgeous, particularly the wordless pages that show the Ghanian countryside.

Cons:  There’s a lot going on in the story, and I was a little confused about some of the details.

July 21, 2022 at 03:25PM Janet Dawson