FIVE THINGS ABOUT DRAGONFLIES

In this middle-grade novel, a girl learns about her Black Seminole heritage.

Mia Bryant isn’t quite sure where she’s going. Her mom and dad have put the 11-year-old and her best friend, Paisley, into the family car and are taking them on a surprise trip—despite the stormy South Florida weather. Mia and Paisley barely look up from their phones when the family arrives at a building in the middle of nowhere, but the world inside is captivating. The building houses a museum about Mia and her father’s ancestors, the Black Seminoles. The Native American tribe, based in Georgia and Florida, historically took in enslaved people on the run. Mia is a direct descendant of Talula (“one who leaps water”), the spirited daughter of an African American man and a Seminole woman, who lived with the tribe in Spanish Florida. Mia learns that Talula loved to chase dragonflies and spoke multiple languages but longed to trade her traditional female chores for those that involved riding horses and wielding a bow and arrow. As the War of 1812 began, the peace in Talula’s village was threatened—with her Black father a major target—and the girl’s adventurous warrior spirit was put to the ultimate test. Meanwhile, in the modern day, Mia is inspired by Talula’s story. But soon after Mia watches it on film, a natural disaster strikes and she must be braver than she ever imagined. Anne, a prolific author and Florida resident who is of African and Indigenous descent, presents a series opener that is both well researched and well written. The author engages the audience with a dual perspective narration that’s exciting, suspenseful, and socially conscious, though not preachy. Anne supplements the little-known history of the Black Seminoles depicted in the novel with a short glossary of terms and additional information on real-life people and events after the story concludes. Though Mia only appears at the tale’s beginning and end, she’s a relatable young girl who finds her inner strength. The bulk of the unique book belongs to Talula, whose heroic actions will inspire young and older readers.

Riveting historical fiction that will enrich and delight the audience.