A beautifully written middle grade story. Abeni's Song has adventure, sadness, magic, and humor. Clark's approach to weaving the enslavement of Africans, the perils of diamond mining, and the impacts of bullying into an African fantasy is incredibly creative and nuanced. His characters, mainly 12/13 year old girls/spirits are brave, brilliant, and realistic. Abeni's frustration with adults not being honest also highlights something many adults take for granted when dealing with difficult situations and teens. We are thrilled to add this gem to Langston's Library and would love to see a sequel in the future.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for sharing an advanced copy for an honest review.

I requested this ARC because I absolutely love P. Djèlí Clark’s work and I will read absolutely everything he publishes. I read exclusively adult fiction 99.99% of the time so I will say in rating this, I really can’t compare it to what middle grade fiction tends to be like and I certainly can’t speak for the book’s intended audience.

Abeni’s Song follows a young girl, Abeni, who sets out on an adventure to rescue her village thwart a Witch King. Along the way, Abeni meets and befriends spirits, develops her magical and fighting abilities, and learns a lot about herself. A lot of what I love in Clark’s adult fiction is present here: a complex, multi-faceted female protagonist, a well developed and compelling world, and an exciting plot. The book tackles intense themes mindfully, and is a great adventure story that I think middle graders will really enjoy. I particularly love the cast of girls, their friendship dynamic and their bravery - Abeni, Asha, Nyomi, and Zaneeya - and think many young readers would too. One of the things that really stands out to me in Clark’s adult fiction is that he’s written some female characters I’m truly, truly grateful for, and I’m so happy to see this in his middle grade debut as well. I would absolutely buy this book for young readers in my life, and if this is going to be a series, I’d happily read a sequel.

*Content warnings:* references to slavery, colonialism, violence, grief

*Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing / Starscape for providing an ARC in exchange for this review*.

I'm a huge fan of Clark, and it's no surprise that he can ALSO write a killer middle-grade novel. Abeni's Song is full of wonderful details. I hate to bring the Miyazaki into this, but Clark has created characters that wouldn't feel out of place in a Ghibli movie- there's a sword-fighting scarecrow, a porcupine that disappears into clouds of pink flowery fluff, a goat man, and many other spirits living in a world that feels very cinematic. It's a found-family adventure story written with Clark's signature world-building and elements of darkness (there's a pretty dark reveal that I did NOT see coming). Clark includes commentary on colonialism and power, but in a way that will not overwhelm a middle-grade reader, and I think this will be a great book for parents to read along with their kids as Clark provides great jumping-off points for further discussion.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Starscape for the review copy, I highly recommend preordering this one if you've got a middle-grade reader in your life!

Abeni's village is attacked by storm women with burning blades and fire in their eyes. The adults are taken away in chains and the children led away by a magic flute, spellbound. Only Abeni remains, saved by the witch who lives in the forest - the witch who tried to warn her village what was coming. What follows is Abeni's quest to save her stolen people.

. . .

This is a middle grade fantasy inspired by West Africa and the African Diaspora, and the start to a promising new series. I've been missing it since I finished.

While it doesn't add anything groundbreaking to the genre, it is thoroughly enjoyable and it broke my reading slump - I ended up reading over half of it in one day! Which for me is pretty amazing. As my first Djèlí Clark, it reminded me a lot of Okorafor's work like Akata Witch, but felt a little more like standard fantasy in terms of pacing, plot, and characters (especially villains). Y'all know Okorafor is my fave so this is a pretty high compliment.

The mentions of cultures from across the continent were a nice touch and the magic was fun. The worldbuilding is a promising start to what I hope will be at least a trilogy. I'm not sure what to think about the big evils in the book just yet - I'm looking forward to some further exploration in the sequels before I make up my mind, but so far the villains are pretty good (who's the villain, really? The shunned, or those who do the shunning...?) The gang of protagonists are a ton of fun. Abeni is headstrong, smart, and a classic hero, and I would have loved her new friends as a kid.

While it lacks the depth to be a favorite in itself, Abeni's Song definitely lays the groundwork for what could become a favorite series, and since we don't have nearly enough middle grade African fantasies set in Africa, I definitely recommend it.

Note: While I love West African fantasy, I'm obviously very white so I look forward to seeing what Black booksta has to say.

Thanks to Netgalley and Tor for letting me read this digital galley.

Abeni's Song will be published on July 25, 2023.

Thank you Netgalley for providing this arc!
I love Clark’s works, his writing is stunningly beautiful and I know I’ll learn so much from his books. This is without a doubt no exception. This is a middle grade book—and I think it will be very beloved.
Our FMC Abeni is so wonderful and so naive and young to take on her task. She faces plenty of hardship. I also really loved Nyomi and Zaneeya so very much 🖤 I really look forward to where this series goes! 🖤 what an adventure truly!!

Thank you very much, Starscape and Tor Publishing Group!

I truly enjoyed the gift of being able to read this early in exchange for an honest review. Ten out of five stars. I've read a few other of P. Djèlí Clark's books before and I am always enthralled at the different writing styles flexed and adapted to,

A younger sense of wonder and adventure fills each sentence, placing us strongly to remember this is.a middle grade book, where students can see their inner heroism and strength. Abeni's Song is masterful, with danger, friendship, struggle, and hope on each page. I cannot wait to recommend this book to my students-- and to read the sequel!

Abeni's 12th birthday and her village's harvest festival take place on the same day, a day that ends in chaos and catastrophe as storm women invade and drag everyone away. Everyone, that is, except Abeni and the old woman the village calls a witch. Apprenticed to the woman, Abeni begins to learn what she needs to know before being sent on a quest to find her missing people.

This is a delightful middle-grade fantasy that puts a fresh spin on the hero's quest. Abeni has many lessons to learn along the way, including working with the animal spirits she meets on her quest and listening to other perspectives. I appreciated Clark's subtle weaving of contemporary commentary (especially on colonialism) through the story. While the language is simplified compared to the style of Clark's adult novel and novellas, it seems suitable for a younger audience, if a little clunky at times. And the ending makes me hope that a sequel is in the works!

Thank you, Tor Publishing and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

Oh, I can't wait to give this richly imagined, cleverly crafted book to the young readers I know. For middle grades, this is a story about family, both blood and found, responsibility, dedication, hard work, and how people who seem to have no power can find and take power even in the face of oppression. Ok, maybe that won't sound so exciting to a middle-grader, so how about witches, sword-fighting scarecrows, seeing the future, animal spirits, incredible landscapes, and heroes who work together to defeat a terrible--and sad--enemy? I loved it.

This is exactly the kind of story i've come to expect from P. Djèlí Clark. This book was full of interesting characters, fantastic worldbuilding, and a plot that held some surprises. Abeni was an interesting character and carried the story well. This was very much a sort of hero's journey type of story, with Abeni being forced to leave after her village is attacked, and even though she's reluctant, she still goes on her own quest and ends up saving the day. My biggest issue was with the writing style, it felt a little off at times, though I also recognize I am not the target audience for this book. I also felt that the story dragged, particularly in the first half where the focus seemed to be on Abeni refusing to do what she needs to.

As a huge fan of his grownup books it is fun to see Clark's take on a book for younger audiences.
He is a master of world building, and everything is so vibrant and visual.
The whole story had a very adventure feel to it, maby a bit classic at times, but it was super charming and sometimes a little dark.
Abeni, although a little annoying at first, quickly becomes a really great character, and it's exciting to dive into African folklore and myth.
This is the first book in the series and I'm looking forward reading the rest.

I will reccommend this to every parent and child that comes into my store.

So....P. Djeli Clark has become one of my favorite authors. I've enjoyed everything of his that I've read and I was super excited to see Abeni's Song available on NetGalley. I was looking forward to a book full of character, adventure, and amazing world-building.

I was not disappointed. Abeni's Song is a true delight! Combining myth, folktale, emotion, and a hero's journey, the book is a wonderful piece of fiction. Clark has a gift for using a few short words to create a powerful visual image. His world-building is wonderful. Abeni is a compelling character.

The adventures Abeni and her companions embark on are at turns whimsical and terrifying. And each adventure contributes to both the growth of the characters and a deepening of the world they live in.

Abeni's Song is the start of a series and I am eager to read more!

this was a beautifully done fantasy-adventure novel, it had what I was hoping for from the description. It had a great magical atmosphere that worked with the story itself. I was invested in what was happening in the world and enjoyed getting to know the characters. The characters were what I hoping for and were really well-written. I enjoyed the way P. Djèlí Clark wrote this and look forward to more.

"Abeni watched the bird in a daze. The way it went on, she couldn’t help but wonder if it was here to welcome her. She frowned. But birds didn’t talk. And welcome her where? This wasn’t her home. This wasn’t her sleeping mat. She peered down at herself, for the first time noticing what she wore. Why, these weren’t even her clothes!"

Abeni is twelve years old when the witch women destroy her village and take away her people. Though her village was warned by their local witch of the coming danger, they refused to believe her- and stay where they are.

The witch had been taking care of the village for many centuries and now asked for the village to fullfil their part of an age-old deal: giving up one of their children in return for everything the witch has done for them.

This, they also refuse. Only one person sneakily ends up giving away her child to the witch- Abeni's mother. When the village is destroyed, Abeni is the only one who remains. She is bedrugdingly taken in by the witch and so begins a coming-of-age journey of a small girl with a big past. At the beginning, it was reminiscent of A Wizard of Earthsea- a reluctant hero very eager to learn magic but not ready for it.

I had some gripes with this novel, at first. I realize I'm not the target audience for this! But I was still sometimes annoyed at the short sentences and abundance of exclamation marks! I'm not sure how well Clark's prose translates to a middle grade audience; it becomes a lot more generic and lacks imagination.

But prose is not everything. The story got better as it went on, with a real sense of adventure harboring animal spirits which reminded me of Darcie Little Badger's A SNAKE FALLS TO EARTH. There are some good, positive themes in this, and though it felt a bit black-and-white at times, I would heartily recommend this for the age group- and even for some diehard fans of Clark.