A Wish After Midnight

Genna & Judah #1

by Zetta Elliott

“Although there is plenty of history embedded in the novel, A Wish After Midnight is written with a lyrical grace that many authors of what passes for adult literature would envy.” —Paula L. Woods for The Defenders Online

“Zetta Elliott’s time travel novel A Wish After Midnight is a bit of a revelation…It’s vivid, violent and impressive history.” —Colleen Mondor for Bookslut

Genna is a fifteen-year-old girl who wants out of her tough Brooklyn neighborhood. But she gets more than she bargained for when a wish gone awry transports her back in time. Facing the perilous realities of Civil War-era Brooklyn, Genna must use all her wits to survive. In the tradition of Octavia Butler’s Kindred and Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, A Wish After Midnight is the affecting and inspiring tale of a fearless young woman’s fight to hold on to her individuality and her humanity in two different worlds.

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Time Travel, Fiction, Historical, African American

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

I’m a Black feminist writer of poetry, plays, essays, novels, and stories for children. I was born and raised in Canada, but have lived in the US for 30 years. I earned my PhD in American Studies from NYU in 2003; I have taught at Ohio University, Louisiana State University, Mount Holyoke College, Hunter College, Bard High School Early College, and Borough of Manhattan Community College.

My poetry has been published in New Daughters of Africa, We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices, the Cave Canem anthology, The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South, Check the Rhyme: an Anthology of Female Poets and Emcees, and Coloring Book: an Eclectic Anthology of Fiction and Poetry by Multicultural Writers.

My novella, Plastique, was excerpted in T Dot Griots: an Anthology of Toronto’s Black Storytellers, and my plays have been staged in New York, Cleveland, and Chicago. My essays have appeared in School Library Journal, Horn Book, and Publishers Weekly. My short story, “The Ghost in Her Bones,” was published in a 2020 special issue of Obsidian.

My picture book, Bird, won the Honor Award in Lee & Low Books’ New Voices Contest and the Paterson Prize for Books for Young Readers. My young adult novel, A Wish After Midnight, has been called “a revelation…vivid, violent and impressive history.” Ship of Souls was published in February 2012; it was named a Booklist Top Ten Sci-fi/Fantasy Title for Youth and was a finalist for the Phillis Wheatley Book Award. My short story, “Sweet Sixteen,” was published in Cornered: 14 Stories of Bullying and Defiance in July 2012. My YA novel, The Door at the Crossroads, was a finalist in the Speculative Fiction category of the 2017 Cybils Awards, and my picture book, Melena’s Jubilee, won a 2017 Skipping Stones Honor Award. I received the Children’s Literature Association’s Article Award for my 2014 essay, “The Trouble with Magic: Conjuring the Past in New York City Parks.”

I am an advocate for greater diversity and equity in publishing, and I have self-published numerous illustrated books for younger readers under my own imprint, Rosetta Press; 3 were named Best of the Year by the Bank Street Center for Children’s Literature, and Benny Doesn’t Like to Be Hugged is a first-grade fiction selection for the 2019 Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Dragons in a Bag, a middle grade fantasy novel, was published by Random House in 2018; the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) named it a Notable Children’s Book. Its sequel, The Dragon Thief, was named a Best Middle Grade Book of 2019 by CBC Books. The fifth book in the series, The War of the Witches, will be published in January 2024. The prequel will be self-published in 2024.

Say Her Name, a young adult poetry collection, was published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in January 2020; it was named a 2020 Book of the Year for Young People by Quill & Quire and a 2020 “Best of the Best” YA Title by the Black Caucus of the American Library Association; it was also a nominee for the YALSA 2021 Excellence in Nonfiction Award and a Top Ten title for Rise: A Feminist Book Project. Say Her Name won the 2021 Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry.

A Place Inside of Me: a Poem to Heal the Heart from FSG was named an ALA Notable Book and a Notable Poetry Book by the National Council of Teachers of English; it won a 2021 Skipping Stones Honor Award and Noa Denmon won the Caldecott Honor Award for her stunning illustrations. Moonwalking (FSG 2022), a middle grade verse novel co-authored with Lyn Miller-Lachmann earned four starred reviews and was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection; it made the NYPL and Bank Street College of Education’s Best Books of 2022 lists, was one of Kirkus Reviews’ 100 Best Middle Grade Books, and made the 2023 Notable Books for a Global Society list. The National Education Association has selected Moonwalking for its 2024 Read Across America program.

I was honored to

Reviews

[Naz (Read Diverse Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Visit my blog for the in-depth review: Read Diverse Books


A Wish After Midnight is one of the most thrilling reading experiences I’ve had this year. Author Zetta Elliott writes with an urgency that informs the reader early on that this will be an important story. It is book 1 of the series, the sequel having been released earlier this year. Given the promising start, I’m eager to see where the story heads.

The novel is a work of speculative fiction, in the spirit of Octavia Butler’s Kindred. The two works actually share the same premise — two young black American women are transported back to the 19th century and must face the harsh realities of that world. A notable difference is that A Wish After Midnight is aimed at younger audience, though it often reads like Adult Fiction. Given the subject matter, it makes sense that the novel does not attempt to sugar coat difficult and controversial topics and language. Teenagers will appreciate the honesty with which Elliott tells the story and the respect she grants them by not holding anything back.

The narrative follows Genna, a 15-year-old Afrolatina who has lived in Brooklyn all her life and wants to get out as soon as possible. Her father left her family and returned to Panama, leaving Genna’s mother to take care of 5 children. Genna does not get along with her older brother and sister and her mother is perpetually working to maintain the household, which leaves Genna to take care of her baby brother most days. Her neighborhood is replete unsavory characters and all Genna wishes for is to escape, go to college, study psychiatry and leave this life behind. Part of Genna’s wish comes true when she literally leaves her current life behind and is sent back to 1863 during the Civil War.

I was thoroughly impressed by A Wish After Midnight from beginning to end. I must specifically commend the voice and writing style. It is first-person narration done right — simultaneously sophisticated, explicit, and realistic. Genna’s voice captivated me and made me see her as a real person with complex feelings about herself, the world, and its history. I recommend this novel to people of all ages, especially to lovers of historical fiction who don’t mind a bit of science fiction thrown into the mix.

[Michelle (driftingsong) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found "A Wish After Midnight" to have a slower start than what I typically prefer. The most intriguing aspect of the story and when it started to really take off was, after all, the travelling back in time. As much as I found the stark realities of Genna's life interesting (when contrasting them with my own experiences growing up), I think it went on for much longer than was strictly necessary.

I really liked Genna as a character. I found her to be intelligent, strong and highly adaptable. She also had a streak of pride which made her relatable to me. Even though I haven't gone through the exact same experience she has of feeling like she is straddling two different identities at school vs home, I have black friends who have experienced commentary about "acting too white" and it's unfortunate that we (as a human race) find it difficult to just let people be themselves and pressure people to fit into boxes.

This book really hit it's stride once it got to the time travel, but I have to say one character that I really wasn't a fan of was Judah. In no way did I think Judah to be a good match for Genna. He was too narrow minded in his own way, and I hated how he kept shutting Genna down declaring her to be ignorant when she clearly wasn't and had reasoned very well the why she thought and felt the way that she did.

Overall, I'm really glad that I read this book!

[Nia Forrester · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the standout of all the books I've read this year. It follows Genna, a 15-year old girl in modern day Brooklyn, living with her mother and siblings in the projects, dreaming of a better life for them all. Genna watches her brother and sister make bad choices, all the while planning her own escape. The one bright spark in Genna's life, apart from her baby brother Tyjuan, is Judah, a young Jamaican immigrant at her school who teaches her that there is beauty in her dark skin, and her wiry hair. But just as Genna and Judah's relationship is beginning to blossom, a series of crises in Genna's family catapults her into a state of emotional chaos and then, inexplicably, into another century. When Genna 'emerges' (I have no other way to explain it) she is a runaway slave girl who has been lashed, and she is still in Brooklyn, only its 1863.

Now, if I say more about what happens, it'll ruin it for you. So I'll just say this: I loved the way this author wove together key moments in history, getting into the minds and hearts of the formerly enslaved, runaways, the immigrant Irish and a young girl thrust into supernatural circumstances. And her writing was poetic and lyrical and beautiful. I was excited to learn that there was a follow-up to this story but even more excited to discover yet another new and amazing writer in Zetta Elliott.

[Alexis Villery · Rating 2 out of 5]

Genna Colon lives in Brooklyn and faces struggles that many teens face in a single parent household where there is just enough to get by. Genna's brother gets arrested and her sister runs away. All the attention is focused on everyone else and Genna is left to take care of her baby brother and continue to be the "good" kid. Feeling lonely and distraught Genna wishes for a different life and is taken back in time to Civil War-era Brooklyn where she is mistaken for a runaway slave. As you can imagine, this isn't exactly what she wished for and she desperately wants to get back home.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I particularly connected to Genna's character and understood her frustration with her family. The time travel aspect of it intrigued me and I enjoyed how the characters in both eras fit their time perfectly and made for some interesting reading. Ultimately though, this seemed like two separate books that were thrown together at the last minute for no rhyme or reason. The reason for the time travel was flimsy at best. I'm not sure there was a clear message in either world. And when she traveled through time, it didn't seem to serve any purpose, except maybe to tell her to never make wishes. Once there the story went on and I kept expecting more. I kept expecting her presence to mean something. I expected her to make an impact. But it was truly Genna treading water until she could find a way back home.

There is a romance element here but I didn't like him. I was most disappointed at the end because I expected a conclusion of sorts. An explanation maybe? But I didn't get one. There was no cliffhanger; it just ended.

Interestingly enough, I enjoyed the book until the end because I kept thinking that all my issues with it would work out. So I guess you could say the ending ruined my reading experience after the fact. Overall, all the parts were there, but they weren't connected in a cohesive, satisfying way.

[Jamie Dacyczyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh, 2.5 stars. This book read very much like a teen version of "Kindred". A black girl, Genna, living in Brooklyn gets mysteriously transported back in time to the civil war era, where obviously being non-white is kind of dangerous.

Despite the interesting premise, this one falls short. There didn't seem to be any purpose to the time travel or explanation of why/how it happened. Genna's presence didn't seem to have an effect of the events taking place in the past, and it didn't seem like she developed as a character during the book.

I was also frustrated by how long it took for the time travel to occur. The first 75 pages or so are basically about introducing us to Genna's current life in Brooklyn, dealing with poverty and being unpopular at school and hoping a boy likes her. It felt like too much build up without anything happening. We're introduced to friends and family members who don't have any purpose in the story once it gets going.

Then the time travel...and Genna kind of just does nothing. She figures out she's in 1865ish and that the Civil War is on. She gets a job as a nanny....and that's it. There are hints that MAYBE she can use her high school education (more than most people had in 1865) to go to college, but the story never progresses to that point. What does happen is that TWO boys come along to distract Genna from doing anything useful or interesting. Neither really served a purpose, and plot would have been more or less the same if neither of them had been in it. It felt like Genna's unique perspective of BEING FROM THE FUTURE could have meant that she'd do something awesome, but she doesn't. Stuff happens TO Genna rather than her facilitating her own story.

So overall, this book was a bit disappointing. The writing was fine (ie, unnoticeable), and it is definitely good to have non-white protagonists....but otherwise this book felt pretty pointless and forgettable.

[Lisa Cresswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've changed my initial review to three stars due to issues I had with the plot and the theme. A four or five star book shouldn't leave a reader feeling this way, in my opinion. I really did enjoy the story, especially when Genna went back in time. The time period, New York City in the 1850's, was one I didn't know much about. I found myself wishing the whole book had taken place in this one time period, rather than including the time travel. As some other reviewers have mentioned, there's no explanation of the time travel at all. None. It would be much more satisfying for the reader if there had been more explanation. For example, remember that movie called "Somewhere in Time" when Christopher Reeve caused himself to go back in time by wishing for it so hard? He cleared the room of anything modern and worked really hard trying to make it happen. Perhaps it's because time travel is so monumental that it needs more of a center stage in a story? I'm not sure exactly, but I suspect that the time travel is just too casually addressed in "A Wish After Midnight" and the characters are just too accepting of it. I also took exception to the theme of hopelessness that things would ever change, whether it was 1850 or 2001. Perhaps that's not what the author meant to convey, but that's the overarching feel I came away with, that no matter how hard you try, somebody's always gonna come along and poo poo your dreams. Maybe that's true? Maybe I'm naïve, but I prefer to feel otherwise.

[Laura Martinelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I get into the review proper, I need to touch on the fact that I had a privileged upbringing and schooling. For me, learning about the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement basically boiled down to “Slavery is Bad, Racism is Bad, but Racism is basically over now except for These Racist People but They are Bad too.” It hasn’t been until the last few years or so that I’ve now just realized that no, I’ve been raised in a society that’s still pretty racist and that I’m guilty of a lot of notions that have been instilled in me. And I say all of this because this is a book that does lay out in incredibly frank terms that while I might be shocked to find out that my worldview is still prejudiced (whether or not I’m consciously aware of it), this is what a lot of people have to deal with on a daily basis—not just back in Civil War-era New York City, or in 2001, or even 2008.

What I like here is that Elliot doesn’t give a black and white (pun not intended) view of race relations, particularly in the present day scenes (and the past sequence at certain points). While Genna’s mother and Judah do have valid points about present-day systematic racism—even when white people like Hannah are well-meaning in their intentions—Genna notes that no, not all white people are taking advantage of blacks. At the same time, she bluntly points out all of the assumptions that are made about her life—the fact that she doesn’t act black at school, that she’s stuck caring for her little brother and people assuming it’s her son, the fact that no one really expects much from Genna. It makes for an incredibly striking comparison when Genna is sent back to 1863, and sees how little progress has been made in a hundred and fifty years. (Also, a really strong contrast between Hannah, who thought she was genuinely doing something good, and the Grants who are massive hypocrites.) I also liked the discussion that not all American black experiences are the same and how that contributes to Genna and Judah’s characterization. It’s interesting that even though Genna knows the discriminations and limits she has in pursuing her dreams, she’s still going to go after them because that’s what she believes in. On the other hand, Judah has a much more pragmatic view about the so-called American Dream and doesn’t see why Genna is going to waste her time trying to become a psychiatrist. And the thing is that neither argument is presented as right or wrong, nor are either one resolved by the end of the book—I think it makes the themes of the book more grounded in everyday real life, and not just as an Example we should aspire to.

I liked that there’s not a specific reason why Genna ends up in 1863, nor is there specific ~destiny~ she must fulfill before she can go back home. It’s treated more like an experience that Genna grows from and not a Grand Lesson or Fate. (It’s a little bit like Jane Yolen’s The Devil’s Arithmetic.) And I also like that Genna does build a little bit of a life for herself in 1863. She doesn’t know how long she’s going to be stuck in the past or how to get home. And I also like that even though Genna and Judah hold onto their 21st century attitudes and upbringings, whenever they do stand up for themselves, the harsh realities come crashing down. Not that I’m advocating the harsh reality, but it’s again, a wake-up call that progress isn’t easy and that not everyone is going to accept the “enlightened” views of the 21st century.

The thing that I’m split on is the pacing of the book. While I get why the first part set in the present day is so long to set up all of the various themes and get into Genna’s daily life, it does drag. The writing and structure of the first part are really choppy and I do think that there could have been parts that could been trimmed down or worked better. (For example, I really didn’t get a handle on Genna’s family conflict. I got why she didn’t want to end up like her brother or sister, but it just felt off to me.) There’s a lot in the beginning that I think could have been handled in three or four chapters, and not gone on for as long as it did. The book started flowing better once it moved into the 1863 setting, and although the structure was similar to the first third of the book (plot interspersed with daily observations of Genna’s life), I think the past scenes worked a lot better in that aspect. I also really liked that Genna spends about six months in 1863, and that a lot of her time is spent going through her day.

(The other problem I had with this book is that Genna returns to the present day on September 10, 2001. I might have missed something earlier in the book, but I don’t think it was mentioned that the “present day” was set in 2001 until right before Genna returned. (Actually, when I saw the year, I said “She’s going to come back on 9/11.” ) I’m probably nitpicking that it’s the specific date that’s mentioned, because pretty much any reader is going to realize what’s coming even if Genna came back a week before; I don’t need specifics.)

I did really like this book, despite the fact that the beginning is a bit of a slog to get through. The stuff that happens in the beginning is important, but I just feel like the writing could have been tightened up a little. That said though, once the main plot kicks in, this is an engaging read that doesn’t simplify or water down its arguments.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the stories in both centuries, but never figured out how they fit together. It was as if I was reading one book, stopped in the middle, and then picked up a differnt book and started it on page 40. The characters and plots in both times were well-drawn and compelling, but the disjointed construction of the book as a whole left me wondering what was going on and the point of the time travel. Based on the end, I assume there are more books and so maybe it would make sense eventually. But because I'm missing the point of the first book, I won't move on to the next one to find out.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"A Wish After Midnight" is a slice-of-life story exploring what life is like for poor blacks now and what it was like in 1863 in Brooklyn from the Emancipation Proclamation to the New York Draft Riots. I'm calling it a slice-of-life book because it doesn't really have an ending or even a resolution of some difficulty. I would have enjoyed it more if it had a more typical problem-resolution story format.

The novel was written in first person, present tense. In part one, Genna told the reader about her life. In part two, she's been sent back in time, and several times the reader was told what was going on when Genna wasn't around and what the characters were thinking. That jolted me from the story. But the story soon slipped back into only first person present tense, though this time telling the story as she lived it instead of her telling the reader about her life.

Genna had a rather mature outlook about some things and tried to be fair about the things she observed, which helped temper the mainly negative focus of the book. The characters were realistic, but the story seemed to be focused more on social commentary than the characters. Still, the story was interesting.

The historical details were more social and political than details about everyday life. Overall, this was worked into the story smoothly. I noticed a few minor, non-critical details that weren't quite right (mainly about the medical practices of the time period).

There was no sex. There was some cussing and swearing, but not a lot. Overall, I'd recommend this novel to those who like "slice of life" or historical time travel stories.

I received this book as a free review copy.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fifteen-year-old Genna lives in Brooklyn in a cramped apartment in a crime-filled neighborhood and dreams of a better future and a career as a psychiatrist. Her only consolations are her boyfriend Judah, who's from Jamaica and wants to go back to Africa, and her nearly daily visits to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, where she tosses a few coins into the fountain and makes a wish. One night, when she flees into the garden after a fight with her mother, she is transported back in time to Civil-War-era Brooklyn, into a time of racial tension and outright rioting.

Genna is a wonderful character -- tough, smart, resourceful, and thoughtful -- and the rest of the characters, while we don't get to know them as thoroughly as Genna, are vivid as well. Also vivid are the settings: present-day and past Brooklyn, which are both beautifully evoked in their differences and in their similarities. The historical details are telling, but never bog down the narrative. Clearly there are comparisons to be made here with Octavia Butler's excellent Kindred, and Elliott's book stands up very well to the comparison; it made me think of Kindred (and think that they would be very good back-to-back reads) while never making me feel that it was at all imitating it.

I should also note that there is at least one major plot thread left unresolved, and that Elliott is apparently working on a sequel, Judah's Tale, which I eagerly anticipate.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by AdrienneBe for TeensReadToo.com

All Genna Colon wants is to find a way out of her current life. She doesn't want to win the lotto or meet a vampire. No, all Genna wants is to leave Brooklyn. She can't stand living in a crowded and dark apartment with her druggie brother, overworked mother, estranged sister, and innocent baby brother.

Genna wants to go to college, and she is fighting to make that goal come true. To her mother, Genna is the family's only potential for a better life. To her classmates, Genna is an outcast and is known as the teacher's pet. But when Genna meets Judah, another part of her can-be future life is revealed: love.

Judah is everything she ever wanted, stable and sweet. Although they don't agree about everything, Genna no longer feels alone. But suddenly everything changes. Reality is no longer true.

After falling into a fountain, Genna is transported to the time of the Civil War in pre-Brooklyn. No longer is Genna trying to get out of the city. All she wants now is to find her way back, but along the way Genna must discover what it means to be free and the costs that come with it.

A WISH AFTER MIDNIGHT by Zetta Elliott is a breathtaking edition to black history literature for young adults. She not only paints feelings with a translucent narrative, but also gives a clear insight on how one's history still rings out in the present. Readers will thoroughly enjoy reading Genna's tale - and will steadily be awaiting a sequel.

[Dixie Keyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best "trip-back-in-time" novels I've read. From 21st century Brooklyn to Civil-War Era Brooklyn, the author effectively draws us with the main character Genna, from present to past. We feel the violence she feels, the love she feels, and the hope. We are not spared the horrors experienced by slaves and former slaves during that time period in New York--Elliott includes it all-- historically researched riots that happened during that time; details about Irish immigrants; the anti-slavery Republicans; and the African Civilization Society--providing readers with historical events and groups they usually don't encounter in history classes.

Most notably, is Elliott's razor-sharp descriptive, episodic writing that allows us a lens to view racism as it happens from one person to another, in both time periods in the book. It's almost as if we can time travel back to see that "freed slaves" weren't really free, even in a Union state. And even abolitionists were still biased toward the black people they employed. Elliott opens doors to the nuances of inequity, torture, discrimination and the historical implications of it all. She has built a masterful historical context that depicts multiple kinds of race-based relationships and issues. Ultimately, this book challenges us all to explore history and our lives more deeply.

[LeRay Kious · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zetta Elliott is a fantastic author. She has a Ph. D in American Studies and writes not only novels, but poetry, plays, and essays as well. She bluntly writes about racism and discrimination, shining a spotlight on issues that many people hide away in the shadows. She says in her bio that she writes the books that she wishes she could have had to read as a child.
All that being said, I'm currently traumatized. I just finished reading "A Wish After Midnight" and I haven't had time to process everything that happened in the ending. This book is a historical fantasy. You will time travel with Genna, a 15-year-old girl from 21st-century Brooklyn, back into the time of the Civil War. "A Wish After Midnight" is an action packed book. It really doesn't seem that way in the beginning (it started off very slowly), but after several chapters you are abruptly yanked back into the past. The characters quickly win over your heart and you will learn many life lessons alongside of Genna and Judah as they discover who they are and what they want in life. This is a eye opening book not only about the plight of African Americans now and in the past, but also about other types of discrimination as well.

[Miss Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guys check out this cover, is it not wonderfully attractive? :D I know they say don't judge a book by it's cover but a nice one definitely doesn't hurt.

Anyways! This is a YA time travel story in the same vein as Octavia Butler's Kindred. It's tight first person POV which really only works when you've got a good protagonist to carry it. Luckily this does! I really liked Genna and got invested in both her lives: present and past. I was a bit sad at each changeover actually, Elliott does such a good job with her world building and characters that I was really into both stories she told. I like how the time travel aspect gives you a chance to see how racialization is an ongoing process, it's much easier to understand why Genna's mother dislikes her baby sitting for Hannah when you see what a similar nanny situation means for her in 1863. 4 stars

[Davina Bell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this novel up from my local library in the YA section after it caught my attention. After reading the synopsis, I was excited because I really enjoyed Kindred. This book was nothing like like it! That comparison should not have been made!! I felt the novel was lacking and missing something important to make it flow better. It dragged, and many times I put it down. IT was a poor attempt at time travel, but unfortunately, I have read better.

[Jherane Patmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thrilling

This book is every black sci-fi geek’s worst nightmare- accidentally time travelling to the past. I really enjoyed Genna’s inner monologue because I remember having very similar arguments with myself as a teenager about race, beauty, education and self worth. There are a few gaps in the plot that I think could’ve been handled more smoothly but all in all I enjoyed this thrilling historical speculative work of art.
I’d recommend this to fans of Octavia Butler

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book transported me into the 1860's and I didn't want to go at first (not because of the writing - just because of all hate in the country right now!) And the story line was so real. I hope there Zetta Elliott is writing a series as this story of America needs to be told and retold to our youth so that they understand the awful construct of race in America.

[Dianthaa]

Check out more reviews on my blog dianthaa.com

I read this for the 2021 Blackathon-Time travel prompt and I really enjoyed it. It surprised me because I've still got an (as it turns out wrong) image of YA being more happy, easy-going reads, and of course, a book dealing with war, riots and slavery was not going to be all that light. Though it was a fun read it did not avoid heavy subjects. Even the present-day story of Genna is harsh, she grows up in poverty, her family is torn apart, her father not being able to cope in America anymore and returning to Panama, her mother is overworked, her siblings hang out with drug-dealing friends. She's an ambitious student who just wants to go to college and leave the ghetto behind her. Her wish does not go as expected and she ends up in the past, in even more dangerous circumstances. The time-traveling part happens a bit later than I would've expected, the first third of the book is set in the present so there's plenty of time to get to know Genna and then see how things from her present affect her in the past. There's also a sequel that I'm very curious to read because of when the book ends, it's not a cliffhanger, but a hook, and a big question is left open. I wonder if the why and how of time travel will be explained more there.

The past-part makes up most of the book, and it's very tense times. Not only is it during the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation has just been announced, there are also draft riots in New York and real and immediate danger for Genna and the other people she meets. Although there a few high-speed scenes, most of the book is pretty slice-of-life, first her school life and then her daily job-life.

I loved reading A Wish After Midnight, Genna's voice and the book's writing style worked very well for me, showing a lot of personality. I liked how pragmatic Genna is, she's thrown into the past and while she misses her family and is confused by this time travel business she gets with building a life for herself there. She's strong and driven, but she's also soft, and that's shown in how she's very good with kids, and gets lonely and tries to make friends.

One point I liked was how it presented different nuances of racism in the past and present, for instance in how differently the characters related to racism or even how some of the well-meaning people held racist pseudoscientific beliefs. It drew parallels between progress that's been made and progress that hasn't. It also tied in to a personal pet peeve of mine when people excuse vehement racists because of "the times", as if everyone was violently racist in the past, discounting people who weren't hateful.

Recommended for: fans of Kindred and historical fiction, also fans of Black Girl Unlimited and Riot Baby

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed A Wish After Midnight! I’m a huge fan of time travel, so when looking through Zetta Elliott’s work this title stood out for my first foray into her stories. Elliott brings the reader into not one but two worlds, first Gemma’s 2000 Brooklyn and then the 1863 Brooklyn she travels to. Both are such incredibly detailed settings, it’s easy to imagine the worlds in which Gemma exists. In modern Brooklyn, we are drawn into the life of an incredible girl who is curious and creative in the midst of chaos around her. I especially loved how detailed her family life was, and found it easy to empathize with Gemma in every situation.

When the book went from 2000 back to 1863, I was almost disappointed to leave the story Elliott had created. However, the same picturesque storytelling from part 1 carried seamlessly to part 2 and 1863 was just as easy to step into and imagine. Choosing just a couple of characters and places to flesh out the world works to Elliott’s advantage, giving clear examples and both similarities and differences between the two worlds Gemma visits.

I was also unfamiliar with the history of the Civil War era in Brooklyn, so learning just the beginnings of that chaos was incredibly valuable. My main complaint, I think, is that I felt Judah could have been more fleshed out. I’m looking forward to reading The Door at the Crossroads, as by the description it seems more Judah forward.

The characterization of all the characters is well done, and more realistic than other speculative fiction with teens as main characters that I have read in the past. Overall, I would highly recommend this book and I will be reading more of Zetta Elliott’s work to explore of her amazing story telling and world building. This is on my list of recommendations for library patrons who like time travel or fantasy when I’m doing readers advisory!

[ReadBecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is very much in the spirit of Octavia Butler's Kindred, but geared toward a younger audience, though it sacrifices none of the harsh reality and depth.

We follow 15 year old Genna, who lives in a Brooklyn ghetto, with her single mother and siblings. She's got dreams and goals, works hard, and is a good kid, but everything around her is limiting, and no one involved in her life really encourages her efforts. Her mother is bitter and jaded, she's vehemently self-defeating and counter-productive to Genna's plans for her own life. She spends her days outside of school alone caring for her baby brother often walking in the public park, while her other siblings fall into trouble. Genna escapes a fight fleeing to the park, then wakes up in unfamilliar surroundings.

We find she is in 1863, just in time for the Emancipation Proclamation to be announced. However, this book doesn't take a trite tone, there is no wonder at the time jump or rejoicing at the news, Genna is almost immediately attacked for simply being a black woman out alone. She finds a home and a job with a family in her new time managing to get by, but she also still hangs onto the same hopes and dreams for this new life in a new time.

This was a tough story to swallow, Genna is so unfazed, really it seems to be because despite vastly different situations there is always a consistency in her life just expressed in different ways over time - marginalization, mistreatment, abuse, poverty, oppression, distrust. She receives all of these things only for being who she is, yet even so she clings to her idealism, against everything, knowing that she can overcome the world built to keep her from climbing.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This felt to me like a strong cross between Octavia Butler’s Kindred and Laurie Halse Anderson’s Seeds of America trilogy (though for the Civil War instead of the Revolutionary War, of course). By this I mean that there was a strong dose of modern vs. surprise! time travel! juxtaposition with an added layer of learn-NYC/Civil War history-through-storytelling.

The thing is… it kind of worked as a storytelling device. I think this would be a good way for young folks to wrap their minds around some of challenges of the 1860’s, because the book was age-appropriate, but also didn’t shy away from the existence of the hard stuff (family separation, brutal beatings, sexual assault). There were a few small things that felt a little dated at this point (it was originally published in 2009, so e.g. references to Ebonics in the classroom didn’t ring quite current), there were moments with language that seemed odd to me (rural slavecatchers saying they will “claim” their money, rather than get it), and I didn’t love the oh-so-common misrepresenting of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation to sound like it freed all enslaved people, when what it did was free those in the Confederacy.

I do think this story has too much telling (rather than showing). The author has the narrator tell us not only what she sees/ hears/ experiences, but also what we are supposed to think about all of it. This is repeated and throughout the book. I’d rather let the actions and interactions happen and let us as readers decide what they mean. Even in a YA book, that’s really possible. That’s the thing that really took my rating down. Still, others may not mind.

[Charis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zetta Elliott's Wish After Midnight follows the story of an African American teenager Genna, who after making a wish at a fountain in her favorite garden, finds herself in Civil War-era New York. She is taken in by a local abolitionist doctor and his wife to take care of their baby son, and she experiences various aspects of Northern racism--even from those who are supposedly be progressive about race. Eventually she discovers that her boyfriend, Judah, has also been wished back in time, and they bring their 21st century perspectives on the world to a 19th century context.

This book covers a lot of ground in its references to various issues--perhaps too much ground. Of course, race takes center stage as Genna and Judah are confronted with the reality of slavery, its effects, and the rampant racism and racial violence in the North. The book also broaches many topics that intersect with race, including gender and socio-economic status. I honestly think Elliott may have tried to touch on too many topics, but I get why she did. There is a lot to cover when it’s a context that is not often represented in YA fiction. That said, while I liked and appreciated Genna's story and perspective, I think the beginning while she is at home in the 21st century dragged on a little too long. And I never got on board with what she saw in Judah--he liked her, sure, but he also never seemed to value Genna's perspectives and goals as much as his own. All in all, I think Wish After Midnight is compelling and it offers an insightful look at Northern racism--a topic that is often glossed over in Civil War-era fiction.

[Yasmine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wish after midnight, a novel written by Zetta Elliot, focusing on the life of
Genna, a 15-year-old who wants nothing more but to get out her troublesome neighborhood in Brooklyn. Growing up, Genna hated the way her life was from the apartment they lived in, her neighborhood, the school she went to, and the drug dealing that was around her. The novel was divided into two parts. The first part mainly focuses on how Genna is forced to deal with poverty, racism, and just wishing that her life would turn out so different. Eventually, she goes to the botanic garden that has a wishing fountain and she makes wishes every day.the novel then took a turn when one of Genna's wishes came true. To sum up, Genna ended up time traveling to the Civil War era and waking up in the body of a slave. Genna struggles with trynna to find a way back and learning to leave the life of as a slave she gets physically abused. With this being said, in my opinion, this book should get 3 stars. One thing that I loved about this book was how it stayed with its one theme of being careful of what you wish for. Although the author didn’t just come out and say it, you can tell that it's the theme throughout the whole novel. While reading this. I can honestly say that everything Genna was feeling I somewhat can relate too. For example, being born into a bad neighborhood in which you can’t change or control what is going on around you. To sum up, this book is a great book to read if you are into fiction.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book blew me away in the same way Kindred did. I wouldn’t be able to say which one I prefer because despite having the same premise, the whole story was so different but there were similarities.

Genna was quiet and suspicious but so proud. I loved how she had such big dreams and she didn’t let it phase her when she was in the past. She didn’t give any of the characters a pass simply because they were in a different era (Martha and the unforgivable word, Dr Brant’s general patronising air) and she was relentless in knowing who she was and why she was here. Her family was broken but interesting and you got the sense that they were going through their own shit. Her brother, who decided to gain power however he could, her sister who chose a different escape to Genna and her mother, who wanted her family to survive. None of the characters were soft but they felt very real. The dual nature of so many of the characters, Dr Brant with him treating people for free but then looking down at women and black people as automatically less intelligent despite all evidence to the contrary, Mrs Brant who didn’t come into her own until near the end of the book and even Martha herself. I think the only character I didn’t like was Judah who seemed very narrow-minded in his own way. He had his own dream and views and he didn’t seem to consider Genna’s views as important as his. Or he thought she only held those views because she was ignorant. I thought Genna could have done much better for herself and that she cared for Judah more because he made her feel special and he was an escape from her life.

The plot was far more historically based than Kindred with the Irish, the war and the riots and I think it was better for it. Genna loved New York, that much was obvious, and in the book, she became part of the history. The writing of the riots was just brilliant and there were several quotes I just want to write on my wall so I can look at them every day.

This book had a similar ending to Kindred, as it was bittersweet and you never did find out what happened in the past to the people Genna knew. But there was one line at the end which blew me away and if I had been skim reading it, I would have missed the significance of it completely. That line changed the whole book for me and I knew that everything has been leading up to that. Like Genna’s whole life was about to change again and she didn’t even know it.

Four stars and highly recommend!

[Liz Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zetta Elliott is one of my favorite authors and I love all the books she puts out. I was particularly drawn to Genna as she is a complex and caring character and she leads the story well. It's a visceral experience to think about what you would do if you were thrown back into Civil War era Brooklyn, with no clear way of getting back to modern day Brooklyn. You also wouldn't be able to talk about it with anyone to talk about what will happen. Unfortunately there are many parallels here between the treatment of African Americans then and now. Genna narrates historical and political elements with analysis and thought and this doesn't take away from the storytelling and the relationships Genna has with Mattie, Nannie, Henry, Paul, Martha and Judah show her to be a good friend with a clear heart.
The story haunts me still, but in a good way. I haven't yet read the sequel but I'll be reading that very soon. The romance between Genna and Judah is so real and easy to relate to with the awkwardness of young love portrayed, with a few more elements thrown in.
Highly recommended!

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm having a difficult time giving a rating to this book. I've settled on 2 stars.
The author does a strong job in developing the main character, Genna. The author also has a wonderful writing style. The problem that I have is that this felt like two totally separate stories in one book, and the transition between the two sections did not make flow.
The first portion of the book takes place in current day Brooklyn, NY. Genna is a teen who lives with her 3 siblings and her mother. Her father left the country years ago, and the challenges are great for her mom and the family. I quickly became absorbed in Genna's story. Then, suddenly, Genna time travels back to Civil War era Brooklyn. There was no real lead-up to this; it just happens. Genna is fully aware that she has travelled back in time. The second story line is strong, but doesn't feel fully connected to the first story. Perhaps part of it is that I am not a fan of time-travel novels, but what started out as a very promising book left me disappointed.

[Claudia Schmidt · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading through the beginning was sheer agony. The narrator’s voice is painful to listen too. I have a 16 year old and the voice reminded me more of a whinny toddler. I listened to the book at times without headphones and even my children and a friend thought that the performance was so bad, we had to turn it off. I literally forced myself to keep going because I was hoping for a good story somewhere but overall felt disappointed. I haven’t taken that long to finish any of my last books.
Although part 2 was better than part 1, and the performance improved, the abrupt ending left me confused, just as much as how/ what happened to get to part 2. I’ve read a lot of really good books on the history of slavery in this country but sad to say this book left me hoping for a better story. The words, the storyline, the many unanswered events. I think this could have been a wonderful story if written a bit differently.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genna Colon lives in Brooklyn and faces struggles that many teens face in a single parent household where there is just enough to get by. Genna's brother gets arrested and her sister runs away. All the attention is focused on everyone else and Genna is left to take care of her baby brother and continue to be the good kid. Feeling lonely and distraught Genna wishes for a different life and is taken back in time to Civil War-era Brooklyn where she is mistaken do a runaway slave. But this is not what Genna wished wished for and she desperately wants to get back home. And I liked the story overall I liked how it brought her back into time and back to present time. I just wish there was like a cliffhanger to end off with.

[Shay Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm doing the summer reading challenge with my 15yr old son, and we're readings books listed on the NMAAHC website. This was our first book from the June reading list. It was a great way to connect with my son and have deeper conversations about being Black in America.

However, for both of us, this story fell a little short. We both would have much rather had Juda's POV throughout the story. As smart as Genna was, she was a little naive, in both worlds, and at times it was a little annoying. However, I really loved that historical connection to the civil war. This allowed for great conversations between my son and I.

I also didn't love the narrator.

Overall, okay book (3 1/2 Stars).

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an adult I enjoyed reading the book. But, as a parent I felt there were some issues that were brought up that should not be in a book for a 12 yr old. There was mentioned prostitutes which I understand was part of her life in Brooklyn but a young person in the suburbs would not know about.
There was a thought about extramarital sex between the two young people when it wasn't really necessary. Genna thought it would be a good tool to soothe her boyfriend , Judah.
The language was realistic but again inappropriate for a young pre-teen.
As a teacher I would have problems assigning it to my class to read.