Everyone along the beach scurried inland toward the village.
Parents snatched their children and ran, but Corrine wasn’t
scared. She knew instantly what was happening. She’d been
through something like this before.
As she watched Papa’s boat rock in the waves, Corrine
recalled the undersea battle she’d had just months before.
Her mother’s sister, Severine, was a jumbie, and she’d
threatened the people of Corrine’s Caribbean island home.
Corrine fought Severine and won, but it hadn’t been easy.
She knew in her heart that Severine could return.
And then the children started to disappear.
At first, her neighbors thought she was to blame; Corrine
was half-jumbie, and everyone knew it. She had to make them
believe that she wasn’t bad, that it wasn’t her fault when
the sea took children. To do that, to fix everything, the
island’s white witch said Corrine had to go beneath the
water.
As the villagers presented gifts to the sea, Corrine let the
waves take her to Mama D’Leau, the powerful ruler of the
jumbies. The white witch said that Mama D’Leau does what she
wants. Never ask more than one question, Corrine was told.
Don’t try to be clever, and be ready to grant her wishes.
Corrine knew that Mama D’Leau could be generous, but not
often.
She only wanted the safe return of the island’s children,
who’d been snatched by someone – or something. She
didn’t want to meet with the fearsome Mama D’Leau, but there
was no other way. Corrine had to risk her own life
and memories, but could she risk her friends’ lives, too?
Put Rise of the Jumbies against your ear, and what do
you hear? Not the ocean, but you may hear your child ask
for this adventure-filled book. Just be aware that you might
need to dive in to help with it.
Packed with West African and Caribbean tales, this book
takes young readers both underwater with mermaids and to a
forest of enchanted beings. Kids who can’t get enough of
legends or fantastical stories will be wide-eyed at both
story and action, the latter of which is truly
heart-pounding but can also be confusing: there are many
fine characters in author Tracey Baptiste’s tale, but when
several of them swirl in a single scene, it can be messy and
in need of sorting. Parents may also want to guide
youngsters to an understanding of subtle slave ship
references that constitute a well-done story-within-a-story.
Savvy readers ages eight-12 may be able to jump into Rise
of The Jumbies feet-first without reading its
predecessor, The Jumbies, but I’d recommend starting
there anyhow. Try that, and your child can wave “hello” to
her next favorite series.
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