19 -The Once and Future Teen

This week, we’re diving into the King Arthur mythos! We discuss the book Legendborn by Tracy Deonn, an urban fantasy book that stars Bree Mathews, a Black teenage girl who discovers a secret society of demon-hunters descended from the Knights of the Round Table. Topics include our love of the fierce and complicated main character, Tracy Deonn’s scathing interrogation of racism in America, and how the book succeeds in making old myths feel new and unique.

Other media mentioned:

• For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten
• The Wheel of Time (2021)
• The Witcher (2019)
• Being Seen by Elsa Sjunneson
• The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling
• A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
• A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
• How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love With the Universe by Raquel Vazquez Gilliland 
• Archivist Wasp by Nicole Kornher-Stace
• The Lost Boys (1987)
• Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots
• The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare
• Sabriel by Garth Nix
• Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn (forthcoming, release date has since been moved to November 2022)

Content warnings: discussions of the death of a parent, antiblack racism, slavery, rape, and generational trauma.