#Black History Month: My Favorite Black Characters in YA Fiction.

 

Hey everyone, since it's Black History Month, which is a month to celebrate african americans and raise awareness for black history, I'll be writing about my favorite black characters in YA fiction. As a young Black woman myself, it feels really nice being represented in books and in the media generally, not just as the snarky or sassy best friend to the white main character. It feels really good being represented as the main character in most genres, and I'm also glad black authors are finally getting the recognition they deserve and finally seeing diversity in fiction in recent years.

So, I'll begin right away. These characters are badass, strong, flawed, human, and exciting. These are the reasons why they are my favorites.

1. Amari from Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Children of Blood and Bone is one of my favorite books, and the protagonists of the story are truly amazing, Tomi Adeyemi did a lot with this book, I'm a fan of mythologies, a huge fantasy nerd, I'm also Nigerian, and I felt very proud reading this book. Out of the 4 main protagonists, I'd pick Amari as my favorite one. Amari is the one of the characters I believe really experienced character growth,  she is the princess of orisha, who was raised in the luxury of the palace, raised under the strict rules of her mother who criticizes her every move and she is really scared of her father. She doesn't agree with her father's rules, but she follows her heart, she was raised in ruthless cruelty of her father who thought of her as weak and incapable of ruling, and then outside the palace with Zelie and Tzain she finds her trueself. She started off the book as the naive princess who was so scared of offending anyone and grew by gaining depth, power and knowledge. ( Also, who loves the epic, powerful, female friendship between Amari and Zelie)

2. Bree from Legendborn by Tracy Deonn.

Bree is an absolutely force. She's incredible, she's a complex, strong willed character. She's not afraid to speak up in the face of discrimination. She's not whiny and I loved that about her. I also loved how the author handled grief and mental illness. We see Bree deal with the grief of her mother's death, how she handles panic attacks and the PTSD from her mother's death. I also love the blend of mythology, fantasy, academia, and how everything feels so natural with so much diversity.

3. Kambili from Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

I had to go re-read purple hibiscus, it's been a long time since I read it, and I was reminded why I love Chimamanda's writing. The book gives an insight into Nigerian  culture and is set against the backdrop of a recent military coup, but that's not what the story is about.

Kambili is the narrator of the story and she is really well written. She's not a special person or anything like that. She doesn't fully grasp what's going on in her life or understand that the way her father treats her, her mom, and her brother is unacceptable and that he's physically and emotionally abusive. Instead, she loves him, worships him, tries to appease him, never rebels against him, and believes her father is this awesome man everyone tries to tell her he is. These actions reflects the abuse she's received and you just want to give her a hug. 

4. Starr from the The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

I absolutely loved this book. The social commentary was really strong. Probably the strongest aspect of the book. Every topic was handled superbly and did not hold back. 

Starr is an inspiration to girls and adolescents looking to find their voice. She's strong, authentic, embraces adversity and learns to stand to stand against it. The hate u give shows the perspective of Starr dealing with the aftermath of seeing her best friend get shot by a police officer for doing absolutely nothing. She confronts the system that's actively working against her. She's not completely fearless but at the same time, she's angry that khalil's murderer could escape Justice. We see through her eyes what young black men go through, how the media portrays black men as guilty until proven innocent. It's a pleasure watching her grow throughout the book. If you're looking for a diverse read that handles social commentary and political criticism well and is also geared towards YA, I recommend this.

5. Ugwu from Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Another Chimamanda Book! I love her writing. There are other really good characters in Half of a Yellow Sun. The main characters are really good. Olanna, Kainene, Odenigbo and Richard. But, my favorite character is the 13 year old Ugwu. Ugwu is the character that seems to holds the story together. He's the character that seems the truly represent the Biafran. He's innocent and doesn't understand the world and has little knowledge of politics going on at the beginning of the story. Then he gets caught up in the frenzy of killings, famine, deaths that the secession brings. He's also kinda the glue that holds the other main characters in the story because he experiences the transformation of the other four main characters as the secession brings out the best and worst in them. Now, I know that Half if a Yellow Sun isn't technically YA, I couldn't resist putting it in.

I'll regularly be updating this list, if you have recommendations for me, let me know please. Also, if you missed my other posts, you can check them out here.