The Door of No Return

Starred review from August 1, 2022
Newbery Medalist Alexander’s gripping historical novel in verse, a trilogy opener rooted in the Asante Kingdom in 1860, centers 11-year-old Kofi Offin—a child deeply connected to water. In early, lyrical chapters that evoke a dreamlike childhood, Kofi lives with his family in Upper Kwanta, where he swims in the river that is his namesake, engages with best mate Ebo, crushes on longtime friend Ama, and listens to the tales of his village-storyteller grandfather, Nana Mosi—who details “the past/ like it lives/ in him,/ like it still matters.” He also clashes with his cousin, a bully, and Mr. Goodluck Phillip, the schoolteacher imparting “the Queen’s English” and Shakespeare to students speaking their native Twi. When an annual festival pits wrestlers from Upper and Lower Kwanta against one another, and Kofi’s older brother, Kwasi, is set to represent their village, an unexpected death sets off a series of tragedies that upend Kofi’s world. Interweaving moments of joyful exuberance and heartbreaking sadness via sensate lines by turns sweet and stinging, Alexander’s sweeping novel conjures a captivating, resonant world of African tradition, life, and ancestral wisdom. Ages 10–up. Agent: Arielle Eckstut, Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary.

Starred review from September 1, 2022

Gr 5 Up-The beginning of a planned trilogy set in western Africa in 1860, the latest offering from Newbery winner Alexander introduces readers to Kofi Offin. His experiences are a window to what life would have been like for a boy growing up in that specific place and time. He has a crush on Ama. He loves his grandfather's stories. He has learned English in school but speaks Twi with his family and friends. His cousin bullies him and he challenges him to a swimming race. When Kofi's brother accidentally kills his opponent in a wrestling match, the gentle verse narrative is disrupted because the family of the dead wrestler captures Kofi and his brother. They take them away from their village to the coast; Kofi goes through the door of no return and is put on a boat where things get very bad very quickly. The cliff-hanger ensures that future volumes will tackle the rest of Kofi's story. Books with enslaved main characters certainly exist in juvenile fiction, but the reality of the transatlantic slave trade hasn't been so adeptly captured for young readers to date. This important book is ideal for classroom discussion; shelve alongside Sharon Draper's Copper Sun and Julius Lester's Day of Tears. VERDICT Told in Alexander's lyrical and masterly style, this gritty and compelling novel of Kofi's life should be included in all library collections that serve young readers.-Kristin L. Anderson

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 1, 2022
Alexander's (The Crossover, rev. 5/14; The Undefeated, rev. 3/19) latest verse novel, the first in a projected trilogy, is historical fiction set in 1860, in the Asante Kingdom village of Upper Kwanta. Kofi Offin learns about the world through his storyteller grandfather Nana Mosi: how he came to be named after the river; the origin of the rivalry with neighboring Lower Kwanta; and the history of "the wonderfuls," the white colonials who have claimed dominion over their nation of Ghana. While Kofi's school teacher has an affinity for all things British (he's "on a mission to capsize our culture," Nana says), Kofi is content to learn from his grandfather, even as his own highly engaging story plays out through interactions with those around him. There's Ama, Kofi's childhood friend and the most beautiful girl he's ever seen; his best friend Ebo; and the cousin who torments Kofi. And there's his older brother Kwasi, the newest athlete to compete in the village games during the Annual Kings festival. When a wrestling contest results in tragedy, the tentative peace with Lower Kwanta is broken. As a result, Kofi is taken captive, and the book now becomes a searing chronicle of the terror that will carry him to "the door of no return" and far from home. A master storyteller himself, Alexander has taken great care to incorporate familiar West African sayings, folklore characters, and rituals. Themes of conflict within and between cultures, and of war and peace, hate and love, despair and hope are deeply embedded throughout this gripping tale that forefronts the humanity of those who were forced into slavery. Eboni Njoku

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from April 1, 2023

Gr 5 Up-Alexander's latest novel introduces a planned trilogy, beginning in 1860 Asante Kingdom, now modern Ghana. Ghanaian-born British actor Holdbrook-Smith elevates Alexander's verses into a transformative performance. Kofi, 11, lives with extended family amid friends, including a first crush. The colonial outside encroaches with the insistence to speak the "Queen's English," despite warnings from Kofi's storyteller grandfather of inevitable "invaders." When Kofi's brother accidentally kills his royal opponent during a wrestling contest, the tragedy sets in motion Kofi's agonizing journey through the door of no return. In between the rhythmic drums that open and close the extraordinary production, Holdbrook-Smith is every character: youthfully earnest Kofi; scratchy-voiced Grandfather; pretentiously nasally Mr. Goodluck Philip; the squeaky "small-small boy" in a cage; the vicious "men with no color"; proud Afua reminding "Do not forget to listen for the beautiful things" as she jumps to her death. VERDICT Libraries should expect consistent demand in all formats.

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2022
A boy's life is turned upside down following a wrestling match in West Africa's Asante Kingdom in 1860. Eleven-year-old Kofi Offin loves his family, admires his friend Ama, and tries to avoid his bully of a cousin. Kofi's teacher, Mr. Goodluck Phillip, who canes him for speaking Twi, is convinced the students must learn the Queen's English, but Kofi prefers the stories of Nana Mosi, his grandfather and the village storyteller. The place he truly feels at home is the river, where he practices swimming and dreams of defeating his cousin in a race. But before that can happen, all attention turns to the Kings Festival, which features highly anticipated wrestling contests against representatives from their rival village. This year, Kofi's older brother, Kwasi, has been chosen to compete. During the match, Kwasi accidentally kills Prince Yaw Boateng, his opponent and the nephew of the King of Lower Kwanta, changing the direction of their lives when the king retaliates. The immediacy of this verse novel places readers alongside Kofi, thriving as a young boy surrounded by family love and legacy before being abruptly snatched from all he has known. Alexander's rich language is lyrical and haunting as the water, long a source of comfort for Kofi, becomes full of uncertainty and danger. A riveting, not-to-be-missed trilogy opener that will leave readers invested in what is to come. (glossary) (Verse historical fiction. 10-18)

COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from August 1, 2022
Grades 6-9 *Starred Review* Kofi lives a simple life, but it is a life he loves. He's 11, just on the cusp of becoming a man, and he finds that there are things he must tackle before coming of age: proving his strength by beating his cousin at a swimming match, speaking up so that the girl he likes knows that he admires her, and learning what the elders really mean by their coded language. When Kofi's brother accidentally kills a neighboring chief's nephew in a wrestling match, Kofi instinctively knows that everything in the world is going to change; he just doesn't realize how much. Alexander weaves a breathtaking tale that is ripe with the juxtaposing emotions that come with any coming-of-age story. Through Alexander's verse, readers are reminded of the beauty and unbounded richness that Ghana and her people have to offer. Simultaneously, while offering a picture of mirth and tangible humanity, Alexander immerses readers in the reality of being Asante during the age of slavery. We see Kofi's humanity slowly ripped away alongside the dehumanization of an entire race. Alexander has written a masterpiece, one that powerfully and truthfully gives agency to the Black voices of the past. Profound and important reading. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Alexander is one of the biggest names in kidlit right now, and his ardent fans will be eagerly awaiting his latest.

COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2022
Alexander's (The Crossover, rev. 5/14; The Undefeated, rev. 3/19) latest verse novel, the first in a projected trilogy, is historical fiction set in 1860, in the Asante Kingdom village of Upper Kwanta. Kofi Offin learns about the world through his storyteller grandfather Nana Mosi: how he came to be named after the river; the origin of the rivalry with neighboring Lower Kwanta; and the history of "the wonderfuls," the white colonials who have claimed dominion over their nation of Ghana. While Kofi's school teacher has an affinity for all things British (he's "on a mission to capsize our culture," Nana says), Kofi is content to learn from his grandfather, even as his own highly engaging story plays out through interactions with those around him. There's Ama, Kofi's childhood friend and the most beautiful girl he's ever seen; his best friend Ebo; and the cousin who torments Kofi. And there's his older brother Kwasi, the newest athlete to compete in the village games during the Annual Kings festival. When a wrestling contest results in tragedy, the tentative peace with Lower Kwanta is broken. As a result, Kofi is taken captive, and the book now becomes a searing chronicle of the terror that will carry him to "the door of no return" and far from home. A master storyteller himself, Alexander has taken great care to incorporate familiar West African sayings, folklore characters, and rituals. Themes of conflict within and between cultures, and of war and peace, hate and love, despair and hope are deeply embedded throughout this gripping tale that forefronts the humanity of those who were forced into slavery.

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)