Zora and Me
by Bond, Victoria, and T. R. Simon
(2010). Somerville, Mass.: Candlewick Press.
ISBN 978-0763643003
Reading Level: Grades 5-8
Summary: A young Zora Neale Hurston and her friends Carrie, and Teddy try to uncover the mystery of the King Gator and the murder of Ivory, a traveling turpentine worker. Zora is known around town for her tall tales. When she sees one of her neighbors, Mr. Pendir, with a gator head and believes him to be the culprit, not everyone believes her. She and her best friend Carrie, who is the narrator, discover the town of Eatonville and its inhabitants share a world of secrets and it’s up to them to uncover the truth.
Review: Zora and Me is a great mystery that involves racial tension about identity and trust. This novel was chosen because it takes a real life person, Zora Neale Hurston, one of the great writers of the Harlem Renaissance, and fictionalizes her childhood. It manages to capture the spirit of her other work such as Their Eyes Were Watching God, one of my personal favorites, and makes it accessible for younger readers. It will certainly spark readers to want to know more about Zora, as an adult and as a child. Many will want to read more about her and two friends and their life in Eatonville. Reviewed favorably by Publisher’s Weekly, and School Library Journal, it is sure to be a classic.
Selected Awards: 2011 Coretta Scott King/ John Steptoe New Talent (Author) Award, Edgar Award for Best Juvenile Mystery Novel (Nominated 2011), Christian Science Monitor 5 Great Mystery Books for Children
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