Into the Heartlands

by Roseanne A Brown (Author) Dika Araújo (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

Twelve-year-old Shuri is a lot of things. Scientist. Princess. All around cooler person than her pain-in-the-butt big brother T'Challa.  Shuri knows she could do so much more to help Wakanda, but everyone is obsessed with the prince because he's the next Black Panther. That is, until Soul Washing Day, one of the most important rituals of Wakandan society.

When an argument between T'Challa and Shuri leads to one of Shuri's inventions accidentally destroying the sacred ceremony site, chaos reigns instead of prosperity. Suddenly the people of Wakanda, including her mother the queen, are becoming sick! Could this be a curse from the ancestors? Desperate to save her mother, Shuri dives into research and finds an answer hidden deep in an ancient children's myth. It may be nothing more than a fantasy, but with the sickness spreading each day, the young princess must trust her instincts and travel deep into the mysterious Heartlands to save her family and her kingdom.

Joining Shuri on her journey is none other than a meddling T'Challa. If Shuri and T'Challa can set aside their jealousy and resentment of each other long enough to survive this journey, they might just discover that they are far more powerful together than they could ever be apart. But if they can't face their fears in the Heartlands and lift the so-called curse, it may not be just the end for their family, but the end of Wakanda as they know it. No pressure, right?

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Starred Review
Compelling as a stand-alone, but also a fantastic entry point for kids and tweens curious about the Black Panther universe.

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Roseanne A Brown
Roseanne A. Brown (she/her) was born in Kumasi, Ghana, and immigrated to the wild jungles of central Maryland as a child. Writing was her first love, and she knew from a young age that she wanted to use the power of words to connect the different cultures she called home. She worked as an assistant teacher, journalist, and editorial intern before writing two young adult novels, a Black Panther graphic novel, and the prequel to this book, Serwa Boateng's Guide to Vampire Hunting, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2022. Rosie currently lives outside Washington, D.C., where she can usually be found valiantly attempting new yoga positions or failing to protect her socks from her dog. She is only a little bit convinced that most actors are secretly vampires. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @RosiesRambles.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781338648065
Lexile Measure
550
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Graphix
Publication date
May 20, 2022
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV013070 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Siblings
JUV008020 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Superheroes
JUV008040 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Action & Adventure
JUV008030 - Juvenile Fiction | Comics & Graphic Novels | Media Tie-In
Library of Congress categories
Superheroes
Princesses
Cartoons and comics
Science fiction comics
Action and adventure comics
Superhero comics
Black Panther
Shuri
Wakanda (Africa: Imaginary place)

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