Hoodoo

by Ronald L. Smith

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In 1930s Alabama, twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher is the only member of his family who seems unable to practice folk magic, but when a mysterious man called the Stranger puts the entire town at risk from his black magic, Hoodoo must learn to conjure to defeat him.

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Hoodoo was a pretty fun read. I wish I was a little more pulled in by it - characters besides Hoodoo could have been filled out a lot more, and the setting could have been stronger to make this story even spookier and more memorable. The scenes with the Stranger and descriptions of his movements and image were awesome, and made up for places where the story was a bit thin. Good spooky stuff! (

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kamlibrarian | Dec 23, 2022 |

An interesting, somewhat creepy story about a boy called Hoodoo and his sudden haunting. I like the cadence of the language, the very specific sort of magic, and the unexpected help he continually finds. (

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jennybeast | Apr 14, 2022 |

Hoodoo is the name of a twelve year old boy living in Alabama in the 1930's. It's also the word for the African folk magic his family practices, though Hoodoo has yet to discover any talent for hoodoo himself until he visits a fortuneteller at the fair. When her prophecies begin appearing, Hoodoo is terrified to realize that it's all leading up to him having to fight the demonic stranger the old woman warned him about.
A spooky story of demons and ghosts set among African-Americans in the South. Running a close second to that main plot is all the Southern food and the cooking and eating of it. (

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mstrust | Oct 20, 2021 |

***Reasons I want to read this***
Some members in my family have an interesting relationship with voodoo/hoodoo (even though they are not the same, they use it interchangeable which makes it even more interesting) and I never got why. They certainly don't care about the history or the cultures it belongs to. I think we all have those kinds of members in our family (either born or found). Eccentric and interesting.

The reason I want to read this is because I would've loved this growing up. And I think my family would've enjoyed it. Sometimes I ache because there is so much more fiction we desperately would have wanted growing up.
Representation of any kind is important and it doesn't matter how old you get, if you didn't had it growing up I think something in you will always ache even if you're glad that it can be found today.

Jonesy_now | Sep 24, 2021 |

https://jlc-web.uaa.alaska.edu/client/en_US/apl/search/detailnonmodal/ent:$002f$...

BeckyatAPL | Feb 8, 2021 |

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Awards

Coretta Scott King Award (Winner – John Steptoe New Talent Award (Author) – 2016)

Georgia Children's Book Award (Finalist – Grades 6-8 – 2019)

Volunteer State Book Award (Nominee – Middle School – 2018)

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CCBC Choices (Fiction for Children – 2016)

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Hoodoo

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2015-08-01

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In 1930s Alabama, twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher is the only member of his family who seems unable to practice folk magic, but when a mysterious man called the Stranger puts the entire town at risk from his black magic, Hoodoo must learn to conjure to defeat him.

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Winner of the 2016 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award

Twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher was born into a family with a rich tradition of practicing folk magic: hoodoo, as most people call it. But even though his name is Hoodoo, he can't seem to cast a simple spell.

When a mysterious man called the Stranger comes to town, Hoodoo starts dreaming of the dead rising from their graves. Even worse, he soon learns the Stranger is looking for a boy. Not just any boy. A boy named Hoodoo. The entire town is at risk from the Stranger's black magic, and only Hoodoo can defeat him. He'll just need to learn how to conjure first.

Set amid the swamps, red soil, and sweltering heat of small town Alabama in the 1930s, Hoodoo is infused with a big dose of creepiness leavened with gentle humor.

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