Content levels
Positive tags
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Synopsis
Three extraordinary people use their unusual powers to protect the fledgling state of Liberia. Gbessa, exiled from the West African village of Lai, is starved, bitten by a viper, and left for dead, but still she survives. June Dey, raised on a plantation in Virginia, hides his unusual strength until a confrontation with the overseer forces him to flee. Norman Aragon, child of a white British colonizer and a Maroon slave from Jamaica, can fade from sight when the earth calls him. When the three meet in the settlement of Monrovia, their gifts help them salvage the tense relationship between the African American settlers and the indigenous tribes, as a new nation forms around them. -- adapted from jacket
Is She Would Be King appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 16 and up.
Historical magical realism set during Liberia's founding with themes of slavery, colonialism, and survival. Contains moderate violence (plantation brutality, snake bite, exile survival), historical racism, and mature thematic content about nation-building and cultural conflict.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, mild sexual content, and mild language. Content notes include slavery, death, and violence (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Teens will be drawn to the three protagonists with extraordinary abilities who must navigate identity, belonging, and their role in protecting a new nation.