MAYOWA AND THE SEA OF WORDS

A London girl gains deeper knowledge of the power of words and her family’s mysterious legacy.

Mayowa Howard, whose mother is Nigerian and father is white and English, first tried jumping on a book when she was 8, but she only succeeded in tearing the cover. She’d seen Grandpa Edward book jumping when he visited, and she wanted to try it, too. Her math teacher father considered this a “harmless family tradition” (but frustratingly wouldn’t say more); her mother, a blind jazz pianist, forbade the activity, worried that Mayowa might damage another book and get in trouble. Now 10, Mayowa goes to stay with Grandpa Edward at the grand (if dilapidated) Edgerley Hall over summer break, where she finally gets some real answers. Grandpa Edward explains that “every time you read a book and feel something, that feeling returns to the book.” Some people in their family—logosalters, like Mayowa—can release these stored emotions by jumping on the books. When Mayowa gets to know Hamza, a local refugee boy, and learns about an upcoming parliamentary vote on a bill to do with refugees and asylum seekers that’s attracting xenophobic rhetoric, she springs into action with help from Grandpa Edward. Onuzo’s young readers’ debut incorporates humor (including funny footnotes) into a story that cleverly explores the ways that literature promotes empathy. Zorite’s lively black-and-white illustrations add to the charm.

An imaginative series opener that will warm readers’ hearts.