The Boy to Beat the Gods

The Boy to Beat the Gods is a richly evocative and fascinating adventure taking inspiration from, and rooted in, the culture of African storytelling. Tales of the Yoruba spirits form the backbone and history of this epic, exciting and entertaining story and are part of a wonderfully emerging young readers' genre in contemporary children's literature.

Seven Orisha gods terrorise the many villages of the land, strike fear into their people.  When they descend on a village wielding their darkly destructive powers, only the offering of the fruit of baobab tree and the sacrifice of some of their own community can save the entire village from absolute annihilation. Young Kayode, who lost his own father years before as an Orisha sacrifice, is weary of living in fear.  He is consumed with the idea of eating one of the gods' forbidden baobab fruits to obtain the power of the gods themselves so he can turn his equal power upon them and destroy them all.  So follows a tale of one boy's determined, dangerous and death-defying quest to release his own sister from the grip of the Orisha and save all who suffer at their hands.

I couldn't put this book down .. the action and drama spill from its pages at a furious pace. The setting of the story feels vast; the seven gods are superbly detailed in their immense size, in their individual powers and in the force of their malevolent intentions. From the "large and gluttonous" Obatunde, who feasts on the bodies that god Sanjoh strikes down with lightening, to the trickster god Eko, shape-shifting into chimps, lions and much more, the story creates bold, impossibly strong and foreboding figures on a giant scale against the fabric, timber and stone compounds.

The heroic saviours are young Kayode and his new friends (fiercely brave despite their fears and losses in life), grief-stricken Tiwa, and Bami.  Even with the power of Orisha running through Kayode's veins, this won't be enough to defeat seven mighty gods - help, loyalty and the secrets of the Orisha ways then comes in a totally unexpected but heart warming way …

The Boy to Beat the Gods is a fantastic book celebrating a rich African culture in a brilliant adventure with themes of friendship, hope and using powers righteously.  It would make a read-aloud, if you want to share a strong quest adventure with a different cultural setting. Expect epic battle scenes, quietly moving moments, gently funny exchanges between characters and journeys of self-discovery, self-belief and coming together to save all.

272 pages / Reviewed by Jennifer Caddick, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 9+