The Chaos

Starred review from March 5, 2012
Mixing mythology and massively ­surreal events, adult fantasy author Hop­kinson (The Salt Roads) explores questions of identity and image in her YA debut, set against the backdrop of a world gone mad. Canadian 16-year-old Sojourner “Scotch” Smith is trying to find her place, with her mixed Jamaican, black, and white heritage making it hard for her to fit in. Her relationships with her family, friends, and ex are in flux, weird black spots are growing on her skin, and she sees floating horse heads wherever she goes. Then, in a heartbeat, the planet is thrown into bedlam, with reality running wild and nightmares stalking the streets (“in London, Big Ben was now blowing giant soap bubbles.... There appeared to be a new island off the coast of Jamaica, and it seemed to be made of gumdrops”). Scotch must find her lost friends and family and come to terms with her own changing nature in a journey filled with peril, self-discovery, and terrifying moments. Hopkinson’s use of language and imagery is almost magical, and her characters add much-appreciated diversity to the genre. Ages 14–up. Agent: Donald Maass, Donald Maass Literary Agency.

April 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-Scotch, a Toronto high school student of Jamaican, white, and black heritage, struggles to find her identity. She recently changed schools because of bullying, her parents are strict to the point of alienating her, her older brother recently got out of prison, she just went through a bad breakup, and the head of her dance team is preparing to kick her off for missing too many practices. As if this weren't enough, Scotch has to hide the fact that she is seeing mysterious floating horse heads (which she calls the Horseless Head Men) and that her body is becoming covered in rubbery black spots. Then The Chaos descends, heralded by a volcano popping up in the middle of Lake Ontario, and suddenly everyone is seeing the Horseless Head Men, and much, much more. Mythical creatures like Sasquatch are casually walking around, escalators are looping around like Escher drawings, and Baba Yaga's chicken house is terrorizing the streets. Frantic to find her missing brother, Scotch discovers that her black spots are growing so quickly that soon she will be unrecognizable. The action moves quickly but lacks grounding. There is no cause given for the global chaos, or why Scotch was affected before everyone else. Hints that The Chaos is somehow connected to her identity struggle render the worldwide devastation, and therefore much of the plot, meaningless. Hopkinson shows a strong understanding of how questions of identity and sexuality loom in Scotch's life, but this tale of magical realism gone haywire will leave most readers scratching their heads.-Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA

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