Kaya Abaniah and the Father of the Forest by Wayne Gerard Trotman delves into several themes of friendship, family, bullying, and wildlife conservation. Kaya Abaniah is a typical fourteen-year-old boy. He and his mother live on the island of Trinidad. Kaya attends a local school where is close friends with Tom and Raima. He has frequent run-ins with a group of bullies. All is as it should be until strange things begin to happen. The strange things occur when Kaya is ill with a fever and hears a man tell him to watch his food and what he eats. Then Kaya can read minds and perform tasks with above normal ability. Kaya, Tom, and Raima encounter danger on a school trip and meet who they believe is Papa Bois, the father of the forest. Kaya learns his own father’s identity and becomes a student of a group of characters from Trinidadian mythology.
Trotman, a native of Trinidad, brings his personal knowledge of Trinidadian culture to the book. The novel explores the animals, food, and religion of the island in great detail. Trotman relies on his experiences to create likeable characters who grow as the plot progresses. The reader learns a great deal about Trinidad, its animals, and food and culture in great detail.
The ideas and themes of the story are very focused and well-developed. The organization is easy to follow. Trotman’s real talent is in descriptive word choice. The story navigates between Standard English and Trinidad Creole. The dialogue moves the plot forward.
The novel is intended for young adults; I recommend high school as there are violence and some suggestion of typical high school flirtations and sexual innuendoes. The Creole dialect and slang do require close reading to understand the characters. I read the book in about five hours. My verdict? Fans of Percy Jackson and Harry Potter will love this original story steeped in tradition and culture.
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