Root Magic

Walter Dean Myers Honor Award for Outstanding Children's Literature! A Mythopoeic Fantasy Award winner!

Debut author Eden Royce arrives with a wondrous coming of age story of love, bravery, friendship, and family, filled to the brim with magic great and small.

It’s 1963, and things are changing for Jezebel Turner. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won’t stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven— and their uncle, Doc, tells them he’s going to train them in rootwork.

Jez and Jay have always been fascinated by the Gullah folk magic that has been the legacy of their family for generations—especially the curious potions and powders Doc and Gran would make for the people on their island. But Jez soon finds out that her family’s true power goes far beyond small charms and elixirs…and not a moment too soon. Because when evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town in this gripping historical fantasy, it’s going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through.

In a world of Gullah magic and Civil Rights Era tensions, can one young girl protect her family from dangers seen and unseen?

• A Rich Gullah-Geechee World: Explore the culture and history of the South Carolina Sea Islands, where African folk magic is a part of everyday life for Jezebel and her family.
• A Supernatural Mystery: When her grandmother passes away, Jezebel and her twin brother Jay must learn the secrets of rootwork from their Uncle Doc to defend against a rising evil.
• Civil Rights Era Setting: Set in 1963, this story navigates the challenges of school integration and the timeless plight of Black Americans facing down a harassing police deputy.
• Southern Black Girl Magic: A powerful journey of self-discovery as Jezebel discovers the true strength of her family's legacy and the magic she holds inside.