Reading Enhancement Guide #2: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Patreon)

Here are five things to read, watch, know, or learn about to enrich your read of Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. Have a suggestion that me or another patron might enjoy? Feel free to share!

1. Read This Mini-Primer on Yoruba Culture

The Yoruba people are over 40 million strong, with most living in Nigeria (but other significant populations in Benin and Togo). The places they inhabit is known as Yorubaland. 

The population is both Christian (since the 19th century) and Muslim (since the 14th century). But many Yoruba people still acknowledge their cultural religion, which includes Orisha or 400 minor deities and a High God, Olorun. The religion is also found in Latin American countries due to the slave trade. 

2. Check Out Yoruba Art

Ms. Adeyemi noted the books will be depicted in an epic franchise, and looking at Yoruba Art will definitely help envision what the films will look like.The Yoruba people had great access to natural resources, and their art is wide and varied. The above image shows a 17th-19th Century Bracelet. The human head is a significant symbol in Yoruba art, as it is considered the most important part of a person. Below is an image of the Ife Head, which likely originated in the 14th or 15th century. Ife is the place according to Yoruba oral traditions where life began. Historical records place this ancient city's birth at 800 AD.

Below is an image of ere ibeje figurines, showing twins. The Yoruba have more twins than any people in the world, and twins account for 4.4% of all maternities. 

Below are Egungun Masquerade costumes, prominent among Oyo Yoruba, used in a festival for the spirits of deceased ancestors returning from the afterlife to interact with living descendants. 

Read more about Yoruba art here and here 

3. Read Up On Genocide

As I discussed in this month's book club video, one of the prominent themes in Children of Blood and Bone that I connected to the real world the most is that of genocide. Here are five of the deadliest genocides (not including the holocaust) that may spark your research:

Holodomor (1932-1933)- The genocide of 3.3-7.5 million Ukrainians at the hands of Soviets in a man-made famine.

Cambodian Genocide (1975-1979) - The murder of 1.6-1.8 million Cambodians by a communist regime occupying Cambodia

Kazakh Genocide (1931-1933) The murder of 1.5-2.3 million Kazakh people (of Kazakhstan) by Soviets in a man-made famine.

Armenian Genocide (1915-1922)- The murder of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire

Rwandan Genocide (1994)- The murder of approximately 1 million Tutsi people by the Hutu political majority 

Also, you should read up on the genocide occurring now in Myanmar, formerly Burma. Burmese gemstone sales are funding the military sanctioned murders of Rohingya people. For over four decades Myanmar has been cruel to the Rohingya, "denying them citizenship, refusing to let them vote in elections, and launching multiple campaigns to push them out of the country." As covered in the book club video, these were the steps of discrimination and dehumanization. In August 2011, a small group of Rohingya rightfully angry about their treatment in the country (serving as a militia group) killed 12 military officers. The military responded by killing over 6,700 Rohingya and destroying most of the populations homes so that over 727,000 fled into Bangladesh. Read more here:

‘Genocide gems’: Highly-sought Burmese rubies and sapphires may be enriching Myanmar’s military

Myanmar Rohingya: How a 'genocide' was investigated

4. Learn About Magic in Black-American History

Have you ever heard about the black-American tradition of Hoodoo? Brought through the slave trade and mixing West African spiritual practices with western influence, this "rootwork", or "conjure" was utilized secretly by slaves. Many spells and herbal brews were for security. According to Yvonne Chireau, "For its part, Conjure spoke directly to the slaves' perceptions of powerlessness and danger by providing alternative—but largely symbolic—means for addressing suffering. The Conjuring tradition allowed practitioners to defend themselves from harm, to cure their ailments, and to achieve some conceptual measure of control over personal adversity." You can read more about Hoodoo tradition in this mainstream article or you can read the scholarly paper referenced in the article in the PDF attached to this post! In 1931 Zora Neale Hurston published this piece on Hoodoo, available for free if you have JSTOR access. If you're interested in black-American performance magic, check out this article on Nylon.  

5. Find Out More About Tomi Adeyemi

It took the 25-year-old author 45 drafts and 18 months to finish Children of Blood and Bone. Her Nigerian mother helped her title the spells used. Find out more in this stellar Teen Vogue interview. Here's another insightful interview on Okay Africa.