A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars

This book far exceeded all of my expectations. I started thinking it was going to be a fairly mundane young adult fantasy novel and by the end I was so invested in basically every character's storyline, especially our protagonist Sante who is phenomenal and amazing.

The fantasy elements of this book are somewhat confusing, in that there aren't clear rules set out in the beginning of the novel for how the magic mentioned works, but honestly this didn't bother me too much in this instance, mainly because Badoe's prose convinced me that it didn't matter. How magic works isn't what's important, what's important is the story she is telling and the fate of the characters she is weaving.

I'm not going to go on about how important it is to read books that are by people who are different from you and about characters who are different but in this case I do think it is worth mentioning. I am frequently guilty of reading a lot of books that are written by white people about white people (I could blame the lack of diversity in the publishing world for this but honestly if we're not supporting diverse authors and buying and promoting their books then we're equally at fault) and this was such a nice way to diversify my reading. If you're a fan of YA fantasy you should read this, regardless of who the author is, because it's an amazing read, but supporting amazing authors who might otherwise not be as supported is sooooo important. 

Badoe goes one step further and writes in LGBTQIA+ characters which fills my soul with such amazing joy. Seriously I could froth for hours about how much I enjoyed this book but if I can leave you with one thing before you go off immediately and buy your copy (I mean it. Do it now.) its that this is one of the best pieces of storytelling I have read in a long while. So often we get caught up in the minutiae of fantasy settings that we lose what makes a story amazing. 

My rating: 5/5 stars (was it going to be anything less?)

Publication date: 7 September 2017

By the way: I received a digital advanced review copy of A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars from the publisher (Zephyr) via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, all my opinions are my own and I wouldn’t recommend this if I didn’t think it was worth reading.

This book was absolutely beautiful to read. The idea of the sole survivor of a shipwreck had me excited from first hearing about it.
This book holds an incredibly unique story, laced with powerful themes that are full of colour.
Sante is an amazing, strong character that is full ignore feelings and beauty.
Yaba has cleverly written a book that is haunting, seamless and a rare kind of brilliance. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down and I found myself on the edge of my seat more than once.
I highly recommend this book to all contemporary readers. It was a truly amazing debut.

I had heard little to nothing about A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars prior to requesting it on NetGalley. I've been trying to expand my reading of literature by authors of cultures foreign to my own and the book's premise spoke to me, so I was more than delighted than we'd been accepted for this novel.

A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars is pitched as a contemporary but I believe magical or animist realism describes it best. The story combines contemporary themes such as people-trafficking, the flow of refugees from Africa to Europe, and the search for identity and belonging with magical elements of African folklore.

If this storyline had a rhythm, it'd be a quiet one. Badoe laid the focus on Sante's past, her discovery of self, and her struggles rather than spinning a fast-paced plot with twists and turns. Character-driven as it was, A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars delved into intra- and interpersonal developments. Where the Ghanaian main character was concerned, the storyline involved a lot of dreaming and remembering and interactions with ancestral spirits, which slowed down the pace but gave it a special touch. I love human-animal relationships in literature, so the close bond between Sante and her golden eagle Priss was delightful to me. Badoe brought the – what I believe to be Ghanaian – folklore to life with its images rich in colour, making the spirits of the dead an integral part of the story and the theme of redemption and justice. I was curious how an author of Ghanaian heritage was going to handle questions of race and 'othering'. From Sante's point of view, there seemed to be a wider gap between civilised and travelling folk than dark- and fair-skinned people, but Badoe allowed adult characters to voice political views. Badoe addressed the dehumanisation of refugees and the sinking of their ships at our doorstep in a subtle manner, I thought, and raised the focal point of our lives' worth depending on our skin colour. Though there are, of course, many points of view to be considered with regard to the flow of refugees, the voice of an African refugee girl who survived the sinking of her boat is a powerful and relevant one. Badoe also beautifully illustrated this dehumanisation with the spirits of the dead who had come to raise their voices and make their deaths meaningful.

    "Strangers pitch up on our shores and we herd them into camps. They come in broken boats and we let them drown."

Although the plot certainly involved the horrors of people-trafficking, I didn't feel like this was the story's core at all. On one hand, this disappointed me because the book is pitched as a contemporary read, and I expected to see a broad scope of this issue; on the other hand, I hadn't bargained for so much magical realism which was a pleasant surprise. I think I would have preferred it, though, if Badoe had zeroed in on one central theme, rather than trying to combine several contemporary issues in one short book.

The exquisite prose further underpinned the book's whimsical atmosphere. I did feel, however, that the storytelling (as well as any romantic content) had a juvenile touch, so I'd place A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars in the younger section of YA. At fourteen, Sante was a young narrator but her voice captured me from the first page nevertheless. Relationships were certainly part of the storyline, yet mostly took place of an emotional level (as in "crushes") rather than a physical one, which was absolutely fine by me. What Badoe did well was depicting the less pretty sides of romantic feelings, such as jealousy and disagreements. It is noteworthy that A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars features an f/f romance (involving a side character), which almost seemed more important than the main character's relationship.

Overall, A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars addresses important themes, narrated by an authentic main character and enhanced by African folklore, and excites with a whimsical note and lovely writing. With regard to its themes, I loved how the story communicated through images, for example the spirits, more than through words. However, I feel like the story swayed between several points of focus, capturing neither at the end. Both the dehumanisation of refugees/migrants and people-trafficking are relevant, but I'd have preferred a more in-depth discussion on one topic rather than having several issues addressed briefly, especially since the book was really short.

**Quotations may be subject to change in the final copy.**

This story was as beautiful as the cover. 

Sante doesn't remember her heritage, having been found in a treasure chest as the sole survivor of a shipwreck. After being adopted into a travelling circus, Sante discovers she has some kind of magical connection to 'the great beyond', and uses this on her journey to self discovery.

The writing of this was lovely, wth a lot of character development in under 300 pages. Sante never felt contrived, and I enjoyed the hint of magical realism and Ghanaian folklore laced throughout. It wasn't entirely clear at first what time period this was set in, so I went into the story thinking it would be more historical than it actually was, however this didn't really effect the story. 

It also managed to handle the ongoing issues of human trafficking delicately, and in this current climate I do feel it's an important issue. I know I don't read enough stories relating to this, and I'm currently trying to educate myself about other cultures. I'd even go so far as to say it would be a book I'd recommend my son to read, who's seven. 

In short, a great little story.

This book was a wonderful, quirky tale full of love, strength, friendship and magic. The story flowed really well and i really loved Sante as a character and the connection she had to others around her like Priss and Cobra. Also just need to add in here now delicious the cover is for this, absolutely stunning.

This story was just magical, beautiful and evocative but it also touched upon darker things like sex trafficking, especially underage children. It also brushed upon the topic of immigrants and how often people fleeing their own country for a better life are scammed by those who promise to take them to a better place, and they end up dying in the middle of a foreign ocean.

I just think this book and Yaba Badoe was able to blend the seriousness of a lot of the things Sante was facing up against with the beauty and freedom that was the subtle magic she possessed and the type that Cobra and Cat had as well. I really enjoyed it, and I also loved the glimpses into the circus life and the different acts they all performed.