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elementarymydear 's review for:
King and the Dragonflies
by Kacen Callender
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“everything could change in the amount of time it takes for a single heart to stop beating”
Me: This audiobook looks interesting, I’ll listen to it in the car.
Me two weeks later: *sobbing behind the wheel*
Read this and more reviews on my blog!
There isn’t really an easy way to summarise this book, with so many layers to a deceptively simple story that don’t all get revealed and resolved until the very end. Set in a small town in modern-day Louisiana, 12-year-old Kingston goes down to the bayou every day to see the dragonflies. His older brother has died suddenly, and King is convinced that his brother is now a dragonfly and that he needs to work out which one he is. Meanwhile, King’s friend Sandy runs away from his abusive home after coming out as gay, and a conflicted King decides to help him. As the two boys spend more time together, King begins to come to terms with the fact that he himself might be gay, and what that means for him as a gay Black boy in Louisiana.
As soon as the book began I was transported to small-town Louisiana, lost in both the excellent writing and narration. (Seriously, listen to the audiobook. So. Good.) Callender is extraordinarily talented at creating such a simple narrative that is not only beautifully written but captures the complexities of King’s life. How his grief impacts his behaviour and his own understanding of himself; how his parents love and care for him but are unable to help him; how his sexuality and his race are equally a part of him but seemingly at odds.
Really, though, the core of the book is the evolution of King’s relationship with his parents. How they learn to listen to him, and he learns to open up and ask for what he needs from them. The understanding between him and his parents grows stronger and stronger as the two generations learn from each other and help each other. (And what coming out storyline is complete without a crying-in-the-car-with-a-parent scene?)
This is the intersectional book that needs to be in every school library. Callender takes us straight into the heart of the story and the characters, creating one of the most moving books on grief, friendship and coming-of-age I’ve read. Everyone will learn something about themselves reading this book, and everyone will have more understanding and empathy for those around them after reading it, too.
Me: This audiobook looks interesting, I’ll listen to it in the car.
Me two weeks later: *sobbing behind the wheel*
Read this and more reviews on my blog!
There isn’t really an easy way to summarise this book, with so many layers to a deceptively simple story that don’t all get revealed and resolved until the very end. Set in a small town in modern-day Louisiana, 12-year-old Kingston goes down to the bayou every day to see the dragonflies. His older brother has died suddenly, and King is convinced that his brother is now a dragonfly and that he needs to work out which one he is. Meanwhile, King’s friend Sandy runs away from his abusive home after coming out as gay, and a conflicted King decides to help him. As the two boys spend more time together, King begins to come to terms with the fact that he himself might be gay, and what that means for him as a gay Black boy in Louisiana.
As soon as the book began I was transported to small-town Louisiana, lost in both the excellent writing and narration. (Seriously, listen to the audiobook. So. Good.) Callender is extraordinarily talented at creating such a simple narrative that is not only beautifully written but captures the complexities of King’s life. How his grief impacts his behaviour and his own understanding of himself; how his parents love and care for him but are unable to help him; how his sexuality and his race are equally a part of him but seemingly at odds.
Really, though, the core of the book is the evolution of King’s relationship with his parents. How they learn to listen to him, and he learns to open up and ask for what he needs from them. The understanding between him and his parents grows stronger and stronger as the two generations learn from each other and help each other. (And what coming out storyline is complete without a crying-in-the-car-with-a-parent scene?)
This is the intersectional book that needs to be in every school library. Callender takes us straight into the heart of the story and the characters, creating one of the most moving books on grief, friendship and coming-of-age I’ve read. Everyone will learn something about themselves reading this book, and everyone will have more understanding and empathy for those around them after reading it, too.