The Storyteller
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From National Book Award finalist Brandon Hobson, a kaleidoscopic middle-grade adventure that mixes the anxieties, friendships, and wonders of a Cherokee boy's life with Cherokee history and lore.
Ziggy has ANXIETY. Partly this is because of the way his mind works, and how overwhelmed he can get when other people (especially his classmate Alice) are in the room. And partly it's because his mother disappeared when he was very young, making her one of many Native women who've gone mysteriously missing. Ziggy and his sister, Moon, want answers, but nobody around can give them.
Once Ziggy gets it in his head that clues to his mother's disappearance may be found in a nearby cave, there's no stopping him from going there. Along with Moon, Alice, and his best friend, Corso, he sets out on a mind-bending adventure where he’ll discover his story is tied to all the stories of the Cherokees that have come before him.
Ziggy might not have any control over the past -- but if he learns the lessons of the storytellers, he might be able to better shape his future and find the friends he needs.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
An anxious Cherokee sixth grader finds the courage to pursue the truth behind his mother's disappearance in this supernatural adventure by Cherokee author Hobson (The Removed, for adults). Eleven-year-old Ziggy Echota lives in Poisonberry, N.Mex., with his father, grandmother, and older sister Moon. Ever since his mother went missing 10 years before this book's start, Ziggy has been seeing a therapist to help him manage his anxiety, which he believes is exacerbated by his mother's disappearance: "Native Women go missing all over the country. Nobody seems to be doing much about it," he explains. When new friend Alice, who is Cherokee and uses a hearing aid, tells him they might be able to find clues about his mother in secret desert caves said to be occupied by mischievous spirits called Nunnehi, who can take human form, he endeavors to set aside his fears to uncover the truth. Hobson weaves complex emotional elements such as Ziggy's relationships with Alice and Moon and his experiences with his anxiety alongside ethereal fantasy tropes, plentiful Cherokee cultural nuance, and educational conversation surrounding the United States' historic prejudiced treatment of Indigenous peoples to craft an atmospheric and meditative read. Ages 9–12.
