Thursday, May 14, 2020

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse




Race to the Sun is a Middle Grade novel written by Hugo/Astounding Award winner Rebecca Roanhorse, as part of the "Rick Riordan presents" series.  Like the other books in this series, it provides a scifi or fantasy middle grade story using a mythology/background of a less well known culture - in this case, telling a story inspired by Navajo mythology (Roanhorse is of Ohkay Owingeh and African American heritage and has a Navajo husband).  Roanhorse's adult work drawing upon this mythology to tell SF/F is fantastic, so I was really curious to see how she'd adapt that background to a younger age group.

The answer is of course: very well.  Race to the Sun is very much a Middle Grade novel, with all the typical traits of books aimed at that age group (only the kids can save the world, the disbelieving parent, etc.) but it's one that works very well and will be quite enjoyable for any kid who reads it.  It's a great example of what this series is best capable of, providing excellent entertainment with good themes for kids - of family, of friends, of believing in oneself, - while introducing a culture that most will not be as familiar with.


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Nizhoni Begay is a 7th grader at a new school who is - inexplicably to her - still absolutely not cool.  But there's one special thing about her: she can see monsters.  And when she spots one in a fancy suit watching her middle school basketball game, watching her, she's more than a bit distracted.  And when that monster then shows up at her home and introduces himself as her dad's new boss, she's suddenly scared....especially when the monster tries to kill her and plans to kidnap her younger brother.

And then she spots the monster kidnapping her dad when she sneaks home for lunch....

Soon Nizhoni, her brother Mac and her best friend Davery find themselves on a quest, guided by a talking horned toad, seeking the only thing that can defeat the monster, weapons from Jóhonaa’éí, the Sun itself.  To get them, Nizhoni will have to obtain valuable treasures and pass dangerous trials, and even after that, may have to make a sacrifice in order to get the means to save the day.  And if they don't manage to do it within four days, the monsters shall be unleashed.....
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Race to the Sun is a fun not too long novel, always following its lead heroine, Nizhoni, as she tries to figure out what to do to save her family and stop the monsters.  Nizhoni is a really strong heroine - she's sure of what she sees, and desperate at first to make a name for herself, but not to the point of her being overly cocky or taking extremely brash actions in hubris.  She's a middle school kid who feels uncool and wishes she wasn't, and well, that's pretty easy to empathize with.  And once she's out of school and on the adventure, she's sure she needs to accomplish her mission, but not 100% confident she can do it and always a bit afraid of failure, to go along with fears related to her family.  In short, she's a heroic middle school kid on an uncertain adventure to save her family and that's exactly what she's supposed to feel like, which makes her easy to root for.

Her two friends are also fun side characters, from her brother Mac - who has water controlling powers to her friend Davery, who's a geeky but trusty sidekick always looking for knowledge to deal with whatever problem comes their way.  Add in a magical horned toad and the other spirits and creatures they come across, and it's a fun cast of characters throughout, as the book finds ways to take Nizhoni on an adventure to save the day.  There aren't a lot of twists and turns through it all - the closest thing to a twist is a reveal about Nizhoni's past I won't really spoil but is hardly much of a twist, but it's all written with a great amount of craft so it all works out.

Now Race to the Sun is middle-grade literature, and won't be of much interest to adult readers.  It features classic aspects of this grade-level literature: a lot of the twists are kid-like and kind of silly, the story rushes though the slow intro to jump us as quickly as possible into the action - complete with a father who refuses to believe his kids, etc.  It's very enjoyable for what it is, but if you're expecting any deeper themes, you're not going to get much - the closest examination of such we get is the cute bit that the monster - a shapeshifter - is an Oil exec known for pushing pipelines through native lands.

Overall, Race to the Sun is exactly what it should be: a fun enjoyable read for middle grade audiences featuring a mythology that is likely to be unfamiliar with them from an underrepresented community.  If you're looking for something for your kids to read, this is a very solid choice.
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