ROOT MAGIC

In a Southern drawl, narrator Imani Parks puts listeners right in the heart of rural South Carolina in the 1960s. After the death of their beloved grandmother, 11-year-old twins Jez and Jay begin to train in root work, the African American folk medicine their family has always made for the people on their island. The twins' understanding of their family's ability to conjure magic grows as they notice supernatural occurrences going on in the marsh behind their house. The story's tension also rises with the increasing menace of a racist police officer. With her youthful voice, Parks deftly portrays Jez's growing confidence and maturity, creating a hero whom kids will relate to and cheer for. S.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2021]