Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Art-filled urban fantasy has outstanding Afro-Latina hero.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
In SHADOWSHAPER, Sierra has just started her summer vacation and decides to spend some of it painting a mural in her Brooklyn neighborhood. Up high on scaffolding with her paintbrushes, she spots something very strange on a mural across the way. It's the rapidly fading picture of a man crying a real tear. And then things just get stranger when Sierra heads home. Her grandfather, Lazaro, generally unable to talk after a stroke, tells her, "They are coming. For us. For the shadowshapers." And Sierra needs to find an artist named Robbie whom she knows from school. He will help her. When Sierra heads out for the night with her friends, she finds Robbie and peppers him with questions. Before he can say much about what he knows about shadowshapers, people who can coax friendly spirits into their art, something very unfriendly interrupts them -- a man who looks barely alive, repeating "Sierra" in a raspy voice. After Sierra escapes him, she finds out he was a friend of her grandfather's who went missing and is now a walking dead host for spirits who want to hurt Sierra and her family.
Is It Any Good?
Readers will flock to this book for the outstanding Afro-Latina lead character and stay for the art-infused fantasy storytelling. If you stripped away the shadowshaper spirit part, the story would still fascinate. We follow Sierra to her home, where she faces prejudices from her own family -- sexism from her grandfather and racism from her aunt -- and out with her friends, navigating their gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhood. A scene at a brand-new hipster coffee shop is both full of humor and astute social commentary.
And then there's this whole spirit world accessed through deep cultural connection and art. Sierra slowly discovers her gifts as this world begins to fade. Yet there's more about the immigrant experience to ponder as the body count in Shadowshaper rises and the mystery builds. Sometimes the action falls a bit short of exciting -- you're sure Sierra will jump at the chance to use her cool new powers, and she doesn't think of it until after you're yelling at her through the book, stupidly hoping she'll hear you -- but the heroism wins out in the end. Overall a great start to a unique fantasy series.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the trip to the coffee shop in Shadowshaper. What do the teen characters like about it? What don't they like? How does this scene address the conflicts that arise with gentrification?
How do you think the shadowshaper spirit elements work with the realistic urban setting?
Will you read more in this series? What did you like best about it?
Book Details
- Author: Daniel Jose Older
- Genre: Fantasy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy , Arts and Dance , Brothers and Sisters , Friendship , Great Girl Role Models , Monsters, Ghosts, and Vampires
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Scholastic
- Publication date: June 30, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 12 - 17
- Number of pages: 304
- Available on: Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: August 10, 2017
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