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Reading age
8-11
Genre
Fantasy
Publisher
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Publication date
November 29, 2022
Cameron and his friends discover a world called Chidani and must save it from getting destroyed.
Cameron Battle, a 12-year-old African American boy of Igbo (Nigerian) descent, notices strange occurrences around his house at the end of the school year. However, he pays no attention to them and instead focuses on his upcoming sleepover with his friends Zion and Aliyah. During the sleepover, they stumble upon The Book of Chidani, a storybook Cameron’s late parents gave him. The book tells a tale about a kingdom that had kept the Igbo people safe for many generations.
Suddenly, the three friends find themselves transported to Chidani, where they soon discover that the kingdom is in danger of being destroyed by Amina. Cameron, who is revealed to be the Descendent, has a destiny to fulfill. He must defeat Amina to save Chidani and its Queen Ramala.
This book introduced me to the fascinating world of Nigerian folklore! This book had incredible monsters, powerful gods, and mythical creatures. Chidani sounded like an interesting place. The story takes place in Chidani, a place full of wonder and magic, but I must admit, I wouldn’t want to be cleaned by magical cleaning supplies like the characters in the book!
The main character, Cameron, was a Percy Jackson fan, just like me! On the other hand, Zion was quirky and full of surprises, and Aliyah was intelligent and always had a few gaming references up her sleeve. My only wish was that the characters could have been more developed.
Although the story was predictable, I recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy stories with a unique twist of mythology.
My rating
