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Summary
Summary
"A compelling story of first love and battling racism with a magical twist." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Well-told, fast-paced." -- School Library Journal (starred review)
From the award-winning author of The Truth of Right Now comes a stunning, grounded fantasy in the vein of Dread Nation that follows a black teen as she finds her place among a family of women gifted with magical abilities.
In the Jim Crow South, white supremacy reigns and tensions are high. But Evalene Deschamps has other things to worry about. She has two little sisters to look after, an overworked single mother, and a longtime crush who is finally making a move.
On top of all that, Evvie's magic abilities are growing stronger by the day. Her family calls it jubilation--a gift passed down from generations of black women since the time of slavery. And as Evvie's talents waken, something dark comes loose and threatens to resurface...
And when the demons of Evvie's past finally shake free, she must embrace her mighty lineage, and summon the power that lies within her.
Author Notes
Kara Lee Corthron is an author, playwriter, and TV writer based in Los Angeles. She's the author of The Truth of Right Now , winner of the Parent's Choice Gold Award, and Daughters of Jubilation . Her plays, including What Are You Worth? , Welcome to Fear City , AliceGraceAnon , and Holly Down in Heaven , have been performed across the US, and she writes for the TV thrillers You (Netflix) and The Flight Attendant (HBO Max). She's a multiyear MacDowell Fellow and a resident playwright at New Dramatists.
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Corthron (The Truth of Right Now) brings ancestral magic to Jim Crow South Carolina in this historical YA fantasy. Sixteen-year-old Evalene "Evvie" Deschamps has always known that she, like the generations of Black women in her family, possess magical abilities they call "Jubilation." Following puberty, it becomes more difficult for Evvie to control her magic, which begins with a bad headache and causes accidents when her temper flares. Nervous about hurting her loved ones, Evvie trains with her formerly estranged grandmother while managing her responsibilities as an older sister, her job as a babysitter for a white family, and a new relationship with her childhood crush. The purpose of her training shifts from general control to protection when she is stalked by a strange and sinister white man who claims to know everything about her, including her Jubilation. While the first-person narrative, told in a 1960s Southern dialect, aids in characterization and setting, the novel's harrowing plot is in places disturbing. Emotional, magical worldbuilding, however, redeems the distressing narrative by weaving it with grounding bonds of familial love and protection. Ages 14--up. Agent: Laurie Liss, Sterling Lord Literistic. (Oct.)
Horn Book Review
In the summer of 1962 in an alternate-universe Jim Crow South, Black teenager Evalene Deschamps learns that the women in her family are blessed with magical abilities (including telekinesis, telepathy, and visions of "haints") called Jubilation. These powers, granted with the onset of menstruation, are tied into the women's emotions and provide them with the protection they need to survive in an anti-Black world -- though they need to control their feelings to control their magic. With her grandmother's help, Evalene learns that the Deschamps women, and many other Black women, have used "jubin'" to keep themselves and their families safe from predators. When an evil white man from Evalene's past comes to haunt her, she must rely on her ancestors and her Jubilation to save herself and the ones she loves. Corthron's novel uses an innovative landscape to explore Black girl magic and intergenerational family trauma while also excavating the horrors of anti-Black violence in the past and the present. With its combination of magic, realism, and horror, this is a perfect choice for readers searching for stories where Black girls unapologetically use their magic to save and, when necessary, destroy. S. R. Toliver January/February 2021 p.100(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Corthron brings her writing talent to the realm of YA with a powerful story about a magic-wielding Black teen in the Jim Crow South. Evaline Deschamps possesses the gift of jubilation, ancestral magic for protection passed down from one Black woman to another. In the time of Jim Crow, Evaline and her family realize they need their powers to survive as much as their ancestors did during slavery. As Evie's powers grow stronger and she struggles to master them, a darkness awakens that threatens to eviscerate Evie. Against a backdrop of rampant white supremacy inflicting great suffering and injustices upon Black families, Evie must conquer the evil of her past if she hopes to fully harness her power and protect herself and her family. Corthron inventively explores America's heinous racist history while telling the story of a Black teen grappling with a hostile culture on top of ordinary teenage growing pains, like a first crush. Readers swept up by Justina Ireland's Dread Nation series will gravitate to this historical fantasy, almost as if by magic.
School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--Evalene has magical powers. Sometimes she can make things move with her mind. Her family calls it the Jublilation. Evalene is descended from powerful Black women who used these powers to survive. One spring in the Jim Crow South, right before Juneteenth, Evalene saves a white family from a falling oak tree after inadvertently causing an earthquake with her powers. Evalene is praised as a hero, when just moments before, she was being threatened by these same people for riding her bike into the "wrong neighborhood." That summer, as Evalene juggles work, family, and her growing relationship with her longtime crush Clay, her growing powers manifest in a big, scary, and life-changing way. Evalene's compelling first-person narrative brings readers effortlessly into her life. This historical fantasy contains elements of romance and sex, some violence, as well as strong language. VERDICT This book by author, TV writer, and playwright Corthron is a well-told, fast-paced story about a teenage girl coming of age, while coming to terms with her family's legacy. A perfect addition to any library's collection.--Ariel Birdoff, New York P.L.
Kirkus Review
A Black teen learns more about her family's magical abilities in the Jim Crow South. When Evalene hit puberty, Mama revealed that menstruation brought an additional type of power. Since before the time of slavery, the Deschamps women have been gifted with magical abilities, called Jubilation. Although Evvie doesn't know why they have this magic or what her mind will do, she can usually tell when something is coming by the onset of a painful headache. During the summer of 1962, Evvie spends her days babysitting a White child and the evenings taking care of her twin sisters. When Evvie begins a relationship with her longtime crush, she starts to lose command of her powers more frequently, and she seeks out her Grammie Atti to learn to control the jubin'. Evvie learns that the women in her family--and many other Black families--have been gifted with Jubilation as a tool for survival against predators. The magic feeds off intense emotions, including love and anger. When a dangerous White man from Evvie's past returns to town, she must use the power within her to fight for her loved ones. The story is well paced and suspenseful, and the magic that is Jubilation is wonderfully creative. The exploration of home, and the reflection on how a place where you can't be safe can nevertheless be called home, is powerful. A compelling story of first love and battling racism with a magical twist. (Historical fantasy. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
Chapter 1: Savior 1 Savior HERE'S THE THING ABOUT ME: I ain't normal. Never have been, never will be. So? That's my private business and nobody else's. I got no interest in drawin' attention to myself for any reason other than my good looks and memorable personality. They don't understand what I did yesterday, so they're makin' a big fuss. I hate it, but what am I sposeta do? Refuse a newspaper interview, with my mother so proud she's finna combust? "Can you remember what you were thinking when you first noticed that something was wrong?" a young reporter asks me. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was in high school too. "Nothin'," I say. "I could just tell it was gonna fall, so I had to get them outta the way." This is silliness. Who wouldn't have done what I did? He asks a few more questions; then he makes me pose for a photo with the family. The Pritchards. They flash toothy smiles at me, their savior. Had I not been there yesterday when a big ol' oak tree was about to fall on them and their new, shiny T-Bird convertible, we would not be sittin' here all sweet and harmonious. The flashbulb blinds me, and I'm finally free to go. Mr. and Mrs. Pritchard thank me once again. Their toddlers run circles around us, and Mrs. Pritchard's fat with another one on the way. T-Bird ain't exactly a family car, but that's none a my business. "You should come over to our house for supper one night," she offers. In a fraction of a second, Mr. Pritchard shoots her a look. Ain't no way in hell he's ever gonna let me step foot into his house. Not that I'd wanna go. Plus, white people can't cook. "Thank you, but I'm just glad y'all are safe," I say in my good-girl voice with my forced good-girl smile. I leave the newspaper office's steps with Mama beamin' beside me. "Imma stop sayin' it, but I am so proud a you, baby. You're so brave and selfless." "Honestly, I just didn't have time to think," I say. "That means savin' folks is just who you are then. Don't lessen it. This is a great thing you done." We get to the bus stop and wait. "Whatcha wanna eat tonight? I'll make whatever you want, and you don't even have to help me." "Maybe chicken and dumplin's," I tell her. "Shoulda known. I was guessin' you'd say shrimp and grits, but chicken and dumplin's woulda been my second guess," she says. I mighta said "shrimp and grits," but the last time I asked for it, she complained about the rising price of certain kinds a fish, so I thought it was off limits. She bumps me with her shoulder, and I can't help but grin. It's a weird affectionate thing she used to do when I was little. Mama doesn't know the whole story, though. I'm not a hero. It's the end of a mostly mild spring. There was no storm or high winds. No reason for a giant oak like that to just plummet to the ground. I was foolin' around cuz I got mad. I'd ridden my trusty Schwinn into a neighborhood I didn't recognize. Hadn't meant to, I just wasn't payin' attention. I stopped to figure out where I was and how I ended up there when a man approached me. "Who do you belong to?" he asked, givin' me the dirtiest look. "No one. I just got lost," I explained, backing me and my bike away from him. "I suggest you get un lost 'fore you catch some real trouble," he barked, and then he marched across the street to the car where his wife and kids waited for him. The wife was hollerin' at the little ones to get in the car, but they didn't pay her no mind. When he got to the driver's-side door, before gettin' in, he said something to the woman, and she got closer to him. They talked for a few more seconds--I was too far away to hear what they said--and the wife looked over at me, shakin' her head in disgust. Like the very sight a me was ruinin' their whole day. That ol' oak tree was big enough and near enough that I thought, Wouldn't it be somethin' for these folks to have an accident right now? It was a quick thought, and I don't think I meant it, but it didn't matter. A sharp headache ripped through me, and the tree started rockin' at the bottom of its trunk. And it kept on rockin,' harder and harder. Couldn't believe my eyes. I tried to make it stop, but then I heard the unmistakable creakin' sound of wood startin' to snap. I ran over and shoved the family outta the way. All of 'em. And then the tree came down, crushin' that shiny new car. Once they got over the initial shock, the kids started cryin' and screamin', and their parents tripped over each other thankin' me. I made the mistake of tellin' 'em my name, which is how the newspaper found me. So yeah. Sure. I guess I saved the Pritchards from certain death. But nobody knows I tried to kill 'em first. Excerpted from Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Lee Corthron All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
