Tristan Strong Keeps Punching
July 17, 2021
I love this trilogy so, so much.
The inhabitants of Alke are now in Tristan's world. Tristan and Ayanna band up to travel up the Mississippi River toward Tristan's home in Chicago in anticipation of facing off against King Cotton, running into friends and enemies old and new.
As usual, I loved the worldbuilding. Especially now, with Alke no longer a separate part of the world that we know, seeing the way that history and mythology blended together in the modern-day was just a chef's kiss. I loved this tour throughout cities along the Mississippi River and the events in US history that really impacted African Americans, many of which that I didn't know about before.
I loved the return of all the amazing characters, both heroes and villains from previous books, as well as these people Tristan met along his journey in this book. I especially loved a lot of the smaller antagonists, whose historical basis I was somewhat familiar with, and seeing the way that their manifestation in the modern-day world of this story with plenty of parallels to things said and done today in the real world was very interesting to read.
Tristan's anger is very raw and real, especially for people who are younger, who are filled with enough hope that the world can be better than it is, and is angry when it seems that the adults around them don't rise up to the occasion. I loved the commentary on what makes a hero versus what makes a leader, and I appreciated that Tristan was guided to try to be a leader rather than a hero. Tristan trying to grapple with all his feelings while trying to do right by everyone he cares about and struggling to balance what the adults around him wanted him to do and what he wanted to do was a classic dilemma for a hero. I thought it was hilarious that Tristan was suddenly finding new powers that he didn't have previously, and he wasn't sure how to control them, which I think is very realistic for a child who is told he's a hero and is essentially given fairly minimal training.
Thank you to Disney Publishing Worldwide, Rick Riordan Presents, and NetGalley for the ARC.
More about Tristan Strong Keeps Punching here:
Title: Tristan Strong Keeps Punching
Author: Kwame Mbalia
After reuniting with Ayanna, who is now in his world, Tristan travels up the Mississippi in pursuit of his archenemy, King Cotton. Along the way they encounter new haints who are dead set on preventing their progress north to Tristan's hometown of Chicago. It's going to take many Alkean friends, including the gods themselves, the black flames of the afokena gloves, and all of Tristan's inner strength to deliver justice once and for all.