The Summoner

Zora and Me #3

by Victoria Bond

In the finale to the acclaimed trilogy, upheaval in Zora Neale Hurston's family and hometown persuade her to leave childhood behind and find her destiny beyond Eatonville.

For Carrie and her best friend, Zora, Eatonville--America's first incorporated Black township--has been an idyllic place to live out their childhoods. But when a lynch mob crosses the town's border to pursue a fugitive and a grave robbery resuscitates the ugly sins of the past, the safe ground beneath them seems to shift. Not only has Zora's own father--the showboating preacher John Hurston--decided to run against the town's trusted mayor, but there are other unsettling things afoot, including a heartbreaking family loss, a friend's sudden illness, and the suggestion of voodoo and zombie-ism in the air, which a curious and grieving Zora becomes all too willing to entertain.

In this fictionalized tale, award-winning author Victoria Bond explores the end of childhood and the bittersweet goodbye to Eatonville by preeminent author Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960). In so doing, she brings to a satisfying conclusion the story begun in the award-winning Zora and Me and its sequel, Zora and Me: The Cursed Ground, sparking inquisitive readers to explore Hurston's own seminal work.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Fiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 13, 2020

About the author

Victoria Bond is the coauthor, with T. R. Simon, of the John Steptoe New Talent Author Award winner Zora and Me. She holds an MFA in creative writing and is a lecturer at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York. Victoria Bond lives in New Jersey with her family.

Reviews

[Shelby M. (Read and Find Out) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trigger warnings: Death of parent, grief, hate crime, racial slurs, racism, slavery, sexism

Overall rating: 4 stars

Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Plot: 3 stars

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my full review here: https://www.yabookscentral.com/kidsfi...

ZORA AND ME: THE SUMMONER transports the reader to Eatonville, the first incorporated Black township in Florida, in the early 1900s. Zora and Carrie are best friends and the town is a great place to be - for the most part. The book begins with a white mob's search for a "fugitive" named Terrace Side, who they think may have headed to Eatonville. The town is basically powerless to stop them, and the tension and fear is clear.

Terrace is ultimately murdered, and this tragedy is followed soon by another - the grave robbing of Chester Cools and then a mysterious illness that raises questions of zombies and voodoo. Zora and Carrie seem to be in the heart of it all, bringing their story to life.

What I loved: This book handles some big themes in a way that is perfect for a middle grade audience. The era is captured well, and the racism and dangers come to life through Zora and Carrie's story. There is also the theme of the use of Black individuals for medical schools and related experimentation that is presented appropriately - their bodies are taken because they are seen as less than, and there is nothing the people left behind can do about it. It is a horrible but real practice. These themes are all woven together in a story that comes to life for the middle grade audience through the eyes of Carrie and Zora.

Final verdict: ZORA AND ME: THE SUMMONER is a historical fiction middle grade read that touches on important themes while also engaging young readers. Although this is the third in a trilogy, it could be read as a stand-alone, though they would all be worth reading. Recommend for children who enjoy mystery and light suspense reads.

Please note that I received an ARC. All opinions are my own.

[Alex Baugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really looking forward to reading this final book in the Zora and Me trilogy, but I'm afraid I was rather disappointed. Carrie and Zora are no longer children and are entering 8th grade, their last year of school in Eatonville. The story begins with the capture and murder of a fugitive, and is quickly followed by the grave robbing of Chester Cools, a man who seemed possessed before he died. It doesn't take long before other people seem to be possessed by the same thing that killed Chester. Soon there is talk of zombies and voodoo in the village. Can Zora solve this mystery? It is baffling. I basically like the story, especially the way that Carrie's preacher father and the mysterious illness attributed to voodoo were contrasted, although I found it has too much preaching in it. Bond brought the time period and the dangers African Americans faced from the white people who lived around Eatonville. Lynching, torture and murder are presented semi-graphically, and the entitled feeling by whites that Blacks had not right to privacy in their own homes are also included. But the heart of the story is the grave robbing, which would be a spoiler if I said more.
I do recommend Zora and Me: The Summoner, and although it stands alone, I would read the first two books before this one.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zora & Me: The Summoner is the final book in the Zora & Me trilogy which is set in the summer of 1905 and is the historical fictionalized account of author Zora Neale Hurston's early childhood as narrated by her best friend Carrie. The setting of Eatonville, Florida brings the historical significance of not only being the home of Zora Hurston, but was also the first black incorporated municipality in the U.S. What I enjoyed about the setting was its community atmosphere, where neighbors help neighbors, and day to day life revolved around work, chores, school work, visits to church, the post office, and how Joe Clarke's store was at the heart of the town.

The story begins with an impactful moment, the tragic death of Terrace Side, and the resultant trauma of how his lynching affected the entire town. From the moment that the town is invaded by a lynch mob in the middle of the night, to the pounding on doors, intimidation of the town people, to the instilling of fear in the residents of Eatonville. It's a chilling moment that brings insight into a dark historical period from the past. Moments that not even Mr. Chester Cools, one of the residents of Eatonville is able to escape from. Moments that trigger memories of past events from Mr. Cools own life and contribute to his own subsequent death.

Following Mr. Cools' death, Zora and Carrie try to visit his gravesite to pay their respects, only to discover that graverobbers have stolen his body. Zora begins to speculate whether Mr. Cools has become a zombie because just prior to his death, Zora and Carrie had a run-in with him where he proclaimed he was already dead. Or was the body-snatching the work of Summonoer's, necromancy, Hoodoo, alchemy, or that of thieves who may have sold his body to a medical school for their anatomy dissections? Either way, Carrie and Zora were determined to unravel the mystery and get at the truth. I quite liked Zora, she's strong-minded, has no plans to marry, and be like the girls around her who don't get to fulfill their dreams. At fourteen, soon to graduate at the end of eighth grade, she's forced to grow up so quickly. It's hard to imagine any child at this age transitioning from childhood to adulthood. I admire Zora's firm belief in making things happen for herself. Carrie and Teddy are my next two favorite characters. They both are level headed, have a calming demeanor, and possess this inner strength. I so enjoy the relationship these friends share. The Summoner rounds out the story of Zora Hurston's life and is a powerful story. I especially love the idea from the story that the elderly are "caretakers of the past." ** Thank you to Netgalley and Candlewick Press for the E-ARC. **

[J.L. Slipak · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the finale to the acclaimed trilogy, upheaval in Zora Neale Hurston’s family and hometown persuade her to leave childhood behind and find her destiny beyond Eatonville.

For Carrie and her best friend, Zora, Eatonville–America’s first incorporated Black township–has been an idyllic place to live out their childhoods. But when a lynch mob crosses the town’s border to pursue a fugitive and a grave robbery resuscitates the ugly sins of the past, the safe ground beneath them seems to shift. Not only has Zora’s own father–the showboating preacher John Hurston–decided to run against the town’s trusted mayor, but there are other unsettling things afoot, including a heartbreaking family loss, a friend’s sudden illness, and the suggestion of voodoo and zombie-ism in the air, which a curious and grieving Zora becomes all too willing to entertain.

In this fictionalized tale, award-winning author Victoria Bond explores the end of childhood and the bittersweet goodbye to Eatonville by preeminent author Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960). In so doing, she brings to a satisfying conclusion the story begun in the award-winning Zora and Me and its sequel, Zora and Me: The Cursed Ground, sparking inquisitive readers to explore Hurston’s own seminal work.

Out October 2020

256 Pages

MY THOUGHTS:

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is the last of a biographical middle-grade trilogy which is shaped around Zora Neale Hurston’s life in the first incorporated black township in America–Eatonville. This author successfully incorporates parts of Hurston’s life into her fictional story. Stories based on fact are even more intriguing because as a reader, the prose is true life-like and gives you moments of pause and strong impact. There are some shocking moments that middle-graders may struggle with. The setting is well-written as is the character development. As a conclusion to a trilogy, every detail is wrapped up neatly and the ending is perfectly executed.

This author is very talented and I look forward to seeing what she takes on next.

[Summer · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, I want to note that while this is the third book in a trilogy, you probably wouldn’t have a problem reading it as a standalone, it provides enough information about the characters that you likely won’t feel lost, though obviously ideally, if you have access to all three books, you’d get the most of out of them, especially out of the kids coming of age, if you did read all three in sequential order.

There is a mystery in this involving grave robbing, sleuthing is at a minimum though and the resolution happens by accident really, so for traditional mystery readers (which I’m not), the mystery aspect might prove a little underwhelming, but the gotcha moment is well-written and emotionally charged.

The book isn’t lengthy enough to do a truly deep dive into history, but it gives you plenty to think about from what it was like to live in the first incorporated black town in America yet still be fairly powerless when white men come around, to the use of black corpses (without consent) in medical experiments/schools, and the black farmers who never received their due as scientists all because of the color of their skin.

Zora and Me: The Summoner is at its best, its most emotional, when you’re living that history through these two girls, through Carrie’s sore hands from having to labor in laundry at a young age and through Zora’s fractured family life and the challenges she faces in further education. Their personal lives offer up several moving moments over the course of the book, but none more heartening than their friendship. If you’re tired of stories depicting the toxic side of female relationships, Zora and Carrie are very much the antithesis of that, their support of one another is a beautiful thing. And I love that the ending gives a glimpse of what became of their friendship later in life.

I received this ARC through a giveaway.

[Kru · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the last book of the series Zora and Me, and definitely inspires me to read the previous two books in the series. This can be read as a standalone as well.. The series is told from the point of view of Carrie, one of Zora's bestie. Having read Zora Neale Hurston's "Their eyes were watching God" I was interested in reading this biographical middle grade series on the author, intrigued by the strong woman (Janie) character she created. Thanks to Net Galley and the Publishers for this opportunity to read and review this lovely book.

As people of color, are still fighting to emphasis Black Lives Matter, this story that is about events more than a hundred year old leave us thinking about how much has really changed. The brief encounter of Carrie and her mother with the armed men who storm in to search their home for the missing fugitive Terrace Side, later lynched, sends chills down the spine.

Grave robbing, the politics behind that, the Summoners, alchemy, zombies, the book travels through several paths and ends perfectly connecting all the dots. Teddy comes across as a warm and calm person, while Carrie is very loving, caring and supportive, Zora coming across as a strong willed person, and achieving her dreams, is due to her experiences in Eatonville.

A wonderful, inspiring read for the young and the old alike.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Candlewick Press for this advanced copy!
This is the final book of Victoria Bond's trilogy about Zora Neale Hurston's family and hometown of Eatonville, which is the first incorporated black township in America. I've enjoyed each one, the books unfolding as Victoria Bond used facts from Hurston's life to weave a dramatic story for middle-grade readers. This finale shows Zora's family and Eatonville itself immersed in a frightening upheaval that includes a lynch mob pursuing a fugitive, a grave robber, and Zora's own family sorrows that show reasons she finally left to pursue her own dreams. Her best friend Carrie again tells the tale filled with lives of so long ago with numerous interesting characters, old-time medicine and politics, some explanations of voodoo and zombie-ism at that time, and the challenges for black people even in a place created to be safe. A quote I loved that fits this tale, but our lives, too: "The world is covered in dull and sharp points alike." It begins Chapter Six and when you read the book, be sure to read the whole paragraph it started! There is a brief biography explaining some of the truths woven into the story. Terrific final book!

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway, not knowing it was part of a series at first but decided to still give it a go and see how it turned out, and the story was really good and my teen agrees as she is currently reading it right now! It is a shorter story but still very involved and had a lot of topic to it that is great for a historical type read. Zora is a very strong character and I like strong female led books. This book had a feel from a transition from childhood into adulthood for Zora and how much life changes when you cross the threshold into adulthood and how you look at things and react differently. Many kids nowadays don’t really read about historical aspects such as lynch mobs which is a good educative point to intertwine history into this book. This book gives a glimpse into loss, heartbreak, and some fun aspects of voodoo and fantasy type things but to some are also so real! I really enjoyed this read and will have to read the first two books to get the story to come full circle. Thank you Goodreads giveaway for a fun yet emotional read to give myself and my teen daughter!

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The third book in the outstanding Zora and Me trilogy sees young Zora Neale Hurston and her best friend, Carrie, facing quickly changing times in Eatonville: grief, loss, and racism are closing in on Eatonville and will change Zora's life forever. A fugitive is hunted down and lynched in Eatonville - America's first incorporated Black township - and the mob gleefully terrorizes the citizens of Eatonville; a longtime resident's death and grave desecration sparks fear into the town and Zora and Carrie worry that voodoo and zombies are somehow involved. Zora's mother, meanwhile, is in failing health and her father decides to run for town mayor; a decision Zora knows will make her egotistical, grandstanding father even more difficult to live with. Carrie, meanwhile, worries about her own future with her beau, Teddy, when he falls mysteriously ill. Paralleling major events in Zora Neale Hurston's life, Victoria Bond brings this early part of the author to a bittersweet close. The characters are so fully created, so real, that it's sad to leave them, especially knowing what awaits Zora in the years ahead. Back matter includes a brief biography, a time line of Hurston's life, and an annotated bibliography. Powerful, loaded with emotion, this is a necessity for your historical fiction shelves. Handsell this to your middle schoolers; you'll be giving them her work, Their Eyes Were Watching God, for Banned Books Week when they're in high school. Publisher Candlewick has a chapter excerpt and discussion guide available on their website.

Zora and Me: The Summoner has starred reviews from School Library Journal and Kirkus.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novelized glimpse into the childhood of Zora Neale Hurston and the town of Eatonville where she lived until her father's remarriage. Zora and her father, the pastor of the local church knock heads over most things. She's way too curious and opinionated for him and he favors her older sister. The death of a local resident, his robbed grave, and a prior statement that he believed he was a zombie start Zora obsessing about it and whether a zombie ritual or photography could save her mother even in her rapidly declining state. Joe Clarke, store owner, one of the founders of Eatonville and eighteen years its mayor wound up beaten in a mayoral election by Reverend Hurston, whose arrogance is on full display along with his new car. His actions after the death of his wife split his family up, some going to live with their grandmother in Alabama while Zora went off to boarding school funded by an Eatonville resident.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw last year "The Great American Read" on television in which one of the books mentioned and praised was one by Zora Neale Hurston. I had never heard of her before and was glad to pick up this third part of a trilogy about her, to learn something of her. This is a fictionalized account of her later childhood as told by her friend Carrie. Zora and her family live in an all-Black incorporated town: Eatonville in Florida. This novel details the girls' friendship with the main incidents being a lynching and the grave robbing of an eccentric old man and what Zora finds in the old man's cabin. These events overshadow the story. At the end, Zora leaves the town to try her own wings and make a life for herself. There was material about her life and a timeline after the novel. An enjoyable read, simply written.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zora and Me: The Summoner
By Victoria Bond
2020

A Librarything Early Reviewer's book.
In this third, and final, book of the Zora and Me series, Zora and Carrie and their town deal with the horrors of lynching, up close and personal. The main characters are now young teenagers, and their understanding of the darkness of the world has grown, and so it seems has Zora, by the end of the book she is too large for the small town she grew up in. Especially after the death of her mother and the dismantling of her family.
Like the other two books in the series, this is a well-researched account of life around the turn of the century, it also does not hold back on accurate portrayals of racism and the lack of equal protection under the law to those in the black community.
4 1/2 stars.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have given this book four stars but it lacks the sort of author note which I feel all historical fiction ought to be privy, a clarification for readers identifying which bits are historical and which bits are fiction. Overall, I enjoyed the story and I found it less laboured than the first book (a book I did not finish). It was a quick and easy read and probably a good resource for helping children understand the day-to-day lives of black folk at the turn of the 20th century (but it could have been great if it had the sort of author note it should have).

I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for review so thank you to Candlewick Press.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This finale to the Zora and Me trilogy is fast paced and ties up loose ends in a way that should satisfy readers that were frustrated in the endings for the first and second novels. If you love alternate history in historical fiction you will enjoy this piece. This story tackles some pretty heavy topics which may need some front loading by teachers depending on the students.. However, readers that choose this story independently will be able to handle the topics in the recommended age range for middle grade readers.

[Sue Stearns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of Zora and Me, The Summoner. Knowing it was the third in the series and I had not read the other two, I decided to give it a go anyways. It was so good! It’s not a very long book but all of the characters came to life! It was a quick, easy and fun but sometimes emotional, read. I will definitely read the other two now!

[Marte · Rating 5 out of 5]

"She'll brighten up...the moon, like she brightened up our lives here on ...earth. She'll open up a window...on the moon so it can catch...a little more sun...And that good will stream down on us every night and in every dark moment of our lives."

"Folks are like locked chests. You can't guess which key will open the lid on their experience...yet the key most often resides in their childhoods."

[Moryah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book in a good reads giveaway. This book was an excellent read. It has some moments and phrases that hit hard about both racism and sexism. A great book for educators to diversify their libraries.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I won this book I didn't know it was part of a set. It is about 2 best friends and the small town they live in. It takes place in the early 1900's. It is the first all negro town. It has mystery, love and friendship. It was a good read on its own.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely the darkest of the three books of the series--murder, grave robbing, death of loved ones, dissension between Zora and her father...and I'm curious as to how much of this fiction was based on fact. I also wonder if Carrie was an actual person on Zora's life.

[Csimplot Simplot · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book!!!

[Sylvie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book, full of emotion and storyline is wonderful. Thank you, I will pass it to my friends to enjoy it too.

[Jen Lowry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my top favorite books of all time. My heart ached and was full all at once. Just a masterful ending to a trilogy that should be taught in every middle school classroom!