Ages 8-12

$16.95 Paperback Retail

Yes! A book that not only celebrates Afro-Caribbean culture but we’ve got Black mermaids y’all. Black mermaids! And who doesn’t want to be a mermaid? Now one of the mermaids doesn’t have a fishtail but we won’t ruin it for you. Rise of the Jumbies by Trinidadian author, Tracey Baptiste is a “spellbinding adaptation of a Haitian folktale” and is published by Algonquin Young Readers, a Division of Workman Publishing.

The story starts when local children go missing from their Caribbean island home, Corinne goes deep into the ocean to clear her name. Her and her friends must travel with mermaids across the ocean to fetch a powerful object. Readers will learned about the history of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade while reading this book, which is done through age-appropriate storytelling.

With an action-packed story, diverse characters, Rise of the Jumbies is an inventive twist on Caribbean and West African tales. This is a great book for summer reading that your middle schoolers will enjoy.

You can get Rise of the Jumbies at Amazon.com or in our Big Black Bookstore.