Nigeria Jones

March 15, 2023
Until her mother left them, 16-year-old Nigeria Jones never questioned her father's revolutionary vision. As the daughter of famous Black nationalist Kofi Sankofa, it's up to Nigeria to help raise Freedom, her baby brother, in the Movement, "whose mission is to divest from oppressive systems and create an all-Black utopia." That means working to maintain the Village House, the home where members who need a place for healing or hearth to welcome them can stay until they get on their feet and spread the message of the Movement elsewhere. It means continuing to build the Movement's Freedom School, completing research for her father's books, and filling in any of the gaps left by her mother's absence until she comes back. Nigeria knows she will come back. It does not mean sneaking off to a Quaker prep school that's the opposite of everything her father stands for. However, when the misogyny of the Movement chips away at Nigeria's fealty, that's exactly where she goes. Her tumultuous personal journey toward emotional and radical self-honesty shapes this superb story of a girl missing her mother and terrified of missing out on a life that she chooses for herself. Readers may feel some themes would have benefitted from deeper exploration; still, the complexities of intracommunity gender marginalization within the Movement are a thoughtful reflection of real multilayered freedom struggles within Black diasporic communities. A strong declaration for supporting, loving, and empowering all Black women everywhere. (author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from April 17, 2023
Sixteen-year-old Nigeria Jones explores complex relationships with her famous freedom-fighter father and her all-Black commune in this striking portrait by Zoboi (Star Child). All her life, Nigeria has been homeschooled by teachers in the Movement, a Black activist community created by her father. But a year after her mother abruptly leaves, Nigeria learns that she wanted Nigeria to attend a majority-white Quaker high school, contrary to her father’s wishes and the Movement’s teachings and ideals. Nigeria chooses to attend anyway, and this decision causes ripple effects throughout her community and proves to have drastic implications for her relationship with her dad. These first steps outside her comfort zone help Nigeria learn more about who she is and who she might want to become, and with that knowledge comes a new understanding of what it means to choose one’s own life path. Through Nigeria’s powerfully resonant first-person voice, Zoboi’s mesmerizing storytelling soars. The novel’s chapter headers and narrative structure recall the framework of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, providing a fitting foundation for thorough interrogations of love and loyalty, personal and communal history, spirituality, and white supremacy and misogyny. Ages 13–up. Agent: Elena Giovinazzo, Pippin Properties.

April 15, 2023
Grades 7-12 Nigeria Jones is the warrior princess of her father's Black nationalist movement, and she has never questioned her place in that world before. Her father's movement is based in Philadelphia, and Nigeria's life, from her veganism to her education, has always been carefully controlled: she is a proud Black nationalist who has never gone to either a public or private school. When Nigeria's mother disappears, leaving behind the movement and her children, Nigeria starts to question everything about that life. Furthermore, when she finds out that her mother wanted her to go to school--specifically to a competitive private school--Nigeria feels compelled to see who she is outside of her father's movement. In her newest novel, Zoboi (Okoye to the People, 2022) takes us on an emotional journey. Through her titular character, readers are able to traverse the thematic realms of racism, homophobia, and the assignment of gender roles. Zoboi's story unravels the notion that Blackness is a monolith. It is through this story that we see the multilayered truth of Black identity.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from August 4, 2023

Gr 9 Up-Nigeria Jones, daughter of a Black nationalist and freedom fighter, has never known a life outside the Movement. She's dutifully and willingly played the role her father groomed her to play, that of a warrior princess. She cares for her little brother Freedom, leads the Youth Group, helps build the Freedom School, adheres strictly to veganism, and mentors new residents of the Village House. Yet a year into her mom's disappearance, she begins to waver. The more she learns about her mom and what her mom really wanted-for herself and for her daughter-the more Nigeria questions. When she discovers that her mom secured her a place at Philly Friends, a nearby Quaker private school attended by her cousin Kamau and family friend Sage, her questions turn from drips into a torrent. She starts to wonder if divesting and decolonizing, as the Movement espouses, is the path to change or, at the very least, whether it's the path she wants to follow. Who is the Movement serving? Is it serving men and women equally? What is her path as a young Black woman? Might it be separate from the father she loves and the Movement she's always known? Zoboi artfully introduces each chapter through an epigraph, each a quote either altered to center or by Black women, and structures the book by article, ultimately creating the Constitution of Nigeria Jones. These stylistic choices echo the themes of Black girlhood and intersectionality seamlessly woven throughout Nigeria's story. VERDICT A beautifully constructed portrait of one young woman growing into her own that will move readers to deeply consider the very same questions Nigeria must answer for herself.-Jill Heritage Maza

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2023
Sixteen-year-old Nigeria is expected to lead the youth of the Movement (which is "like a small African West Philly village in the big, white state of Pennsylvania") and model what it means to be a revolutionary. She is the daughter of Kofi Sankofa, "the Black nationalist, revolutionary freedom fighter, and founder of the Movement." Since her mother's departure a year ago, Nigeria has begun to question her own role. Now, though she has always been homeschooled, she learns that her mother attempted to enroll her in a Quaker school before she disappeared. Nigeria wants to fulfill her mother's wishes, but her father refuses to give his consent because it goes against his desire to "divest from oppressive systems," so she must break free of his plans for her. At the same time, she's experiencing strong attraction (and more) to two very different boys. This book (whose chapter titles and epigraphs recall and remix U.S. founding documents) calls for deep discussions about the roles of Black women in the Black freedom struggle as well as the role of young people in these movements. It could be paired with Magoon's nonfiction work Revolution in Our Time (rev. 9/21) and Martin's Freedom!: The Story of the Black Panther Party to expand understanding of the real-life revolutionaries, such as those in the Black Panther Party, who inspire Kofi Sankofa. An opportunity for teen readers to begin grappling with their own ideas of what the revolution looks like. Nicholl Denice Montgomery

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2023
Sixteen-year-old Nigeria is expected to lead the youth of the Movement (which is "like a small African West Philly village in the big, white state of Pennsylvania") and model what it means to be a revolutionary. She is the daughter of Kofi Sankofa, "the Black nationalist, revolutionary freedom fighter, and founder of the Movement." Since her mother's departure a year ago, Nigeria has begun to question her own role. Now, though she has always been homeschooled, she learns that her mother attempted to enroll her in a Quaker school before she disappeared. Nigeria wants to fulfill her mother's wishes, but her father refuses to give his consent because it goes against his desire to "divest from oppressive systems," so she must break free of his plans for her. At the same time, she's experiencing strong attraction (and more) to two very different boys. This book (whose chapter titles and epigraphs recall and remix U.S. founding documents) calls for deep discussions about the roles of Black women in the Black freedom struggle as well as the role of young people in these movements. It could be paired with Magoon's nonfiction work Revolution in Our Time (rev. 9/21) and Martin's Freedom!: The Story of the Black Panther Party to expand understanding of the real-life revolutionaries, such as those in the Black Panther Party, who inspire Kofi Sankofa. An opportunity for teen readers to begin grappling with their own ideas of what the revolution looks like.

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)