“There was a rhythm in my fists.”

From Kwame Mbalia’s Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky.

Boxer Tristan Strong is still reeling from the recent death of his best friend Eddie.  Now his parents are sending him to spend a month with his grandparents in Alabama.  Tristan has Eddie’s journal with him; the journal was supposed to be their final English project, but now it’s Tristan’s only link to Eddie.  However, Tristan doesn’t like to look at it, because of the memories and because the journal has a visible-to-only-him glow.  When Gum Baby, the sap-covered doll from legends, tries to steal Eddie’s journal, Tristan fights with her, which results in him falling through a magical hole and landing in the land of Alke. Their fight also breaks a bottle that held an evil spirit that calls himself Uncle C who tells Tristan to bring him Eddie’s journal. In Alke, Tristan finds a world torn apart by chain monsters (fetterlings) and the terrifyingly-unknown Maafa.  Legendary characters like John Henry and Brer Rabbit are god-like in Alke, so they look after the humans and talking animals of the kingdoms.  Tristan soon learns that he is an Anansesem (gifted with Anasi’s powerful storytelling), which is powerful magic in Alke.  The gods send Tristan, Gum Baby, human Ayanna, and rabbit Chestnutt on a mission to capture Anansi’s story box and bring it back as bait for the one god who could help fix things.  However, a simple mission quickly morphs into a dangerous journey across all the kingdoms as Tristan fights to repair the damage his arrival created.

This story is interesting and the writing style is engaging, but while some of the characters are well-known, most will be unfamiliar to many readers. Despite the entertaining story, the book’s length does weigh on the reader long before the end.  Mbalia does well in creating a story similar to Riordan’s beloved books, but unfortunately, some readers might lose interest before they can see Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky come to its thrilling conclusion.