Valentina, her brother Julian, and her father are hiking the Columbian jungle to track down a vampire. Well, that’s what her father’s doing. Valentina is along for the ride, trying not to be embarrassed about her father and brother’s belief in Columbian folk creatures, and taking the opportunity to practice her drawing. But during the trip, Valentina has a visceral premonition: “The earth is not happy.” She urges her family to leave, but they are caught in a violent earthquake. The kids and their dad are separated when aftershocks dump them into separate crevasses. But before they can get help, Valentina and Julian stumble into a portal that leads to much more colorful, mystical version of Columbia, where the creatures their father seeks out are not only very real, but are determined to eliminate any humans who trip into their safe space.
I read this for tween book club. It was nominated for our local Latino Book Award. You could hand this too any kid who loved Encanto and Moana, because in some ways they are a mashup of those two stories. Similar to Encanto, the book presents a mystical version of Columbia that has roots in the trauma of La Violencia. But rather than the magical world protecting human victims, the magical world cut itself off to protect itself. Madremonte, a Columbian deity (who gives Te Fiti vibes), lost her son to human intervention, and she has ruled that no human is allowed into her kingdom.
I expected this book to explore ecological issues through a fantasy lens (and it does touch on that – the mystical creatures are endangered similarly to our own animals, but more due to being forgotten than being casualties). But it’s much more about generational trauma in response to political and social strife… but with dragons, giant capybaras, and one-legged vampires!
The Columbian lore is delightful – lots of fun and scary mythical creatures are introduced. Spanish terms are interwoven with the English with plenty of context for non-Spanish speakers. The setting itself has a personality: the forest messes with its kid heroes as they try to navigate their way home. The narrative has a great balance of humor, action, and mild spooks. My book club kids loved it! Yours will too.