The Jumbies

The Jumbies

• Genre: Fiction; middle grade fantasy
• Originally Published: 2015
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 680L; grades 4-7
• Structure/Length: 44 chapters; approx. 240 pages; approx. 5 hours, 9 minutes on audio
• Protagonist/Central Conflict: Corinne La Mer isn’t afraid of anything, least of all the jumbies—the tricksters parents made up to try to frighten their children. But one night, she sees some yellow eyes in the forest and starts to wonder if jumbies are real. The next day she meets beautiful Severine at the market and realizes that everything is going to change. Severine plans to claim the island for the jumbies, and with her friends' help, Corinne must call on her ancient magic to save her home.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Monsters and other scary creatures and elements; magic and witchcraft

Tracey Baptiste, Author

• Bio: Born in 1972 in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago; Caribbean children’s horror author known for using folk stories in her writing; earned a BA in English and Comparative Literature and an MEd in Elementary Education from New York University; worked as an elementary school teacher and a textbook editor; currently on the faculty of the MFA program at Lesley University
• Other Works: The Totally Gross History of Ancient Egypt (2016); Rise of the Jumbies (2017); The Crash (2018); The Jumbie God’s Revenge (2019)
• Awards: Children’s Book Committee Bank Street College of Education Best Children’s Books (2016); Américas Award Commended Title (2016)