#13: Read an adventure story by a BIPOC author.

[Roman]

Mary wrote: "Would Miles Morales: Spider-Man count?"

Most definitely!

[Ron]

Mandie wrote: If you like comics, this one is more of a zine. I just finished Montana Diary and I'd definitely categorize it as an adventure story

Thanks. I'll consider it.

[Caroline]

Would Black Cake work for this? Might be a stretch but I'm not really sure how to define "adventure story" and this seems to me like it might fit?

[Emily]

Mandie wrote: "I feel something like NK Jemisin's The Fifth Season , Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower, or Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse could work well here."

BookRiot included The Fifth Season in their newsletter for this prompt!

[Jess]

Washington Black by Esi Edugyan

[Jennifer]

Kelsey wrote: "I'm going to read The Unlikely Thru-Hiker by Derick Lugo which seems to fit the bill and is nonfiction for those who asked above.

The Unlikely Thru-Hiker: An Appalachian Trail Journey"

I just finished this. Read it in 2 days and loved it.

[David]

@Leslie Ann Great choices and thank you! I didn’t know Lee had a queer Chinese retelling of Treasure Island. That sounds like something I need to read regardless of challenges.

[Jessica]

How do you all define an adventure story? I just finished reading FIREKEEPER'S DAUGHTER, which has been mentioned many times as a possibility for this prompt, but I don't think I would call it an adventure story. I'm wondering if I'm thinking of that subgenre too narrowly.

[Jessica]

I guess if I go by this quote from a Wikipedia article, the book fits. Works for me!

"An adventure is an event or series of events that happens outside the course of the protagonist's ordinary life, usually accompanied by danger, often by physical action. Adventure stories almost always move quickly, and the pace of the plot is at least as important as characterization, setting and other elements of a creative work."

[Ron]

Jessica wrote: "How do you all define an adventure story? I just finished reading FIREKEEPER'S DAUGHTER, which has been mentioned many times as a possibility for this prompt, but I don't think I would call it an a..."

Nice. I have Firekeeper's Daughter on my YA shelf. I keep meaning to read it but other books keep coming into play.

[Megan]

Jessica wrote: "How do you all define an adventure story? I just finished reading FIREKEEPER'S DAUGHTER, which has been mentioned many times as a possibility for this prompt, but I don't think I would call it an a..."

I agree. By my definition of "adventure," Firekeeper's Daughter wouldn't fit this prompt. That's why I'm having so much trouble with this category.

When I think of adventure stories, I think of Treasure Island or 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Indiana Jones or The Mummy. I've seen a couple of recent YA books that fit the bill, but since I'm an adult librarian, I really wanted to find an adult story like that, and I really haven't been able to find anything. Anytime I mention this problem to someone, Alexandre Dumas is the first name that springs to mind, but it bothers me that I can't seem to think of any more recent examples.

Obviously, adventure stories, at least the way I am defining them, rely heavily on colonialist tropes, which might explain the scarcity of examples coming from a BIPOC perspective, but that's exactly why I want to find a story out there that helps to deconstruct that narrative.

[Bonnie G.]

Megan wrote: "Jessica wrote: "How do you all define an adventure story? I just finished reading FIREKEEPER'S DAUGHTER, which has been mentioned many times as a possibility for this prompt, but I don't think I wo..."

I don't think that adventure stories are inherently pro-colonial. Books like Washington Black, American Spy, The City We Became, The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey, The Three Musketeers, even Black Girl in Paris are filled with adventure and fun.

[Sherri]

I read Black Leopard, Red Wolf for this prompt.

[Alyssa]

Home byNnedi Okorafor

[Octavia]

I finally got around to reading The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, and I do not recommend it. Everyone in it is deeply unlikable, and nearly all of them are dull. It was 600+ pages of "at least when it's over I can finally say that I've read it." Well, I've read it.

The only entertaining thing about it was Milady DeWinter.

[Ashley]

I read Black Sun and it was fantastic!

[t ♡]

Jess wrote: "Washington Black by Esi Edugyan"


I read this! I adored the first half, but didn't vibe so much with the 2nd unfortunately :(

[Ron]

I was struggling with this one but since the term 'adventure' has many themes, I'm looking for nonfiction related ones.

[Colleen]

I read The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina for this prompt.

[Kelly]

Would The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina work for this?

Magical realism novel, ends up being the family sort of questing to uncover the past of the matriarch.

[Gina]

It sounds like maybe In the Shadow of the Mountain: A Memoir of Courage and When I'm Gone, Look for Me in the East could work?

[Kate]

The Mountain of the Moon by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay is a Bengali adventure book from the early 20th Century about a young man leaving his village in Colonial India to take a job in Uganda and meeting some explorers, then ultimately searching for a mythical diamond mine. It’s pretty beloved in West Bengal apparently. It’s also the only book my non-reader husband has read for fun in his entire life, so I had to track down a translation 😂. It was a surprisingly fun and easy read given its age and that I read it in translation. If you’re interested in a traditional Indiana-Jonesesque adventure told from a non-Western perspective, you might find it interesting. Some of the things said about the native Ugandans might be a little cringey, though. Nothing too egregious, but it is *not* a 21st century book in terms of cultural awareness.

[Tammy]

Kate wrote: "The Mountain of the Moon by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay is a Bengali adventure book from the early 20th Century about a young man leaving his village in Colonial India to take a job in Uganda and m..."

Sounds really interesting. Thanks for mentioning.

[Heather]

I'm considering Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao or She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

[chysodema]

Heather wrote: "I'm considering Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao or She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan"

I read Iron Widow for this prompt - well, I read it because of glowing recommendations from friends, but it fits the prompt beautifully. It is one of my top 3 reads of 2022 so far! It was so, so good.

[Alex]

I, like many before me, read The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina and I loved it! Definitely full of adventure and great for Encanto fans.

[Judith]

I read How Much of These Hills Is Gold by Pam Zhang, which I think fits - it's about two children of Chinese heritage in the 19th century US gold rush (but isn't a children's book).

[Emily]

I read Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi. I actually read the whole series for some reason, even though I thought all the books were just okay.

[Cynthia]

For task #13, I'm going with Amari and the Night Brothers, by B.B. Alston. Firekeeper's Daughter was really good too; I'm going to assign it to #10, "political thriller."

[Natalie Piccotti]

My daughter suggested Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and I'm going to read that one!

[Bonnie G.]

I went with The Verifiers which I loved.

[Wellington]

I read Amari And The Night Brothers for this challenge.