Onyeka struggles with her hair which she finds difficult
to control. It takes her mum hours to
untangle it and it seems to have a mind of its own as we see in the opening
chapter when even donning a swimming cap seems like an ordeal. But when Onyeka’s best friend, Cheyenne, gets
into trouble in the pool trying to save the cap, both Onyeka and
her hair come to the rescue. Discovering
that she can control her hair with her mind comes as a shock to her and seems
to scare her mum who whisks them back to their homeland of Nigeria and to The
Academy of the Sun. Here, Onykea
discovers that there are other children (Solari) who have superpowers and the
Academy is where they live and hone their skills under the protective eye of Dr
Dòyìnbó who Onyeka’s mum trusts.
Whilst Onyeka’s mum goes out in search of her father,
she stays at the Academy where she begins her Solari training. However, when her mum
fails to make contact with her, she begins to worry, but can she and her new-found
Solari friends discover what is going on?
I love everything about this book! The mystery at the
beginning where you have an inkling that Onyeka’s mum knows more than she’s
letting on; the rushed exit from London back to Nigeria, and the whole idea that
the hair Onyeka has spent years battling is actually what makes her truly
amazing and is the source of her superpower.
The Academy sounds truly amazing and the hi-tech nature of
the place adds an element of excitement that is woven seamlessly with Nigerian
culture and customs.
Onyeka makes a wonderful main character: she doubts
herself and gets incredibly frustrated with her hair, even once she knows what it
can do. She has an inner strength that
she begins to discover at the Academy and I can’t wait to introduce her to the
children in my class.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the other main
characters in the book. Adanna, Niyì and Hassan are very different personalities
but each are important in their own right. Niyì is the first Solari she meets
and his friendliness is in complete contrast to Adanna who is rather off-hand
and abrupt, but it’s Hassan who I like the most of the 3: more gentle and I
liked learning bits of Pidgin English that he spoke (there’s a glossary of
common words in the back).
Fast-paced, thrilling and with an ending that will
absolutely leave you wanting more, Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun is a brilliant
book that will be perfect for fans of Amari and the Night Brothers and X-Men. It would make an amazing film!
Due for release on the 9th June, Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun is the start of a thrilling new series that I guarantee will be a big hit.
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