Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky (Tristan Strong #1)

Seventh-grader Tristan Strong feels anything but strong ever since he failed to save his best friend when they were in a bus accident together. All he has left of Eddie is the journal his friend wrote stories in. Tristan is dreading the month he’s going to spend on his grandparents’ farm in Alabama, where he’s being sent to heal from the tragedy. But on his first night there, a sticky creature shows up in his bedroom and steals Eddie’s journal. Tristan chases after it — is that a doll? — and a tug-of-war ensues between them underneath a Bottle Tree. In a last attempt to wrestle the journal out of the creature’s hands, Tristan punches the tree, accidentally ripping open a chasm into the MidPass, a volatile place with a burning sea, haunted bone ships, and iron monsters that are hunting the inhabitants of this world. Tristan finds himself in the middle of a battle that has left black American gods John Henry and Brer Rabbit exhausted. In order to get back home, Tristan and these new allies will need to entice the god Anansi, the Weaver, to come out of hiding and seal the hole in the sky. But bartering with the trickster Anansi always comes at a price. Can Tristan save this world before he loses more of the things he loves?

I had been waiting for this book ever since it was announced in, what, 2018? It’s been a long, harrowing wait. I’m not the person I once was.

Okay, I mostly am. Except that now I’ve read this, and now the wait begins for the sequel, and gosh, this place I’m in looks vaguely familiar for some reason. Oh, wait …

TL;DR: THE WAIT WAS MORE THAN WORTH IT. Sooo freaking worth it. This book just absolutely blew away any and all expectations I had. It’s done with them. It doesn’t need that sort of pressure in its life. It’s just gonna go on and do its own thing, because it doesn’t need my freaking validation, okay?

Tristan Strong Punches A Hole in the Sky is a masterful mid-grade story about a relatable kid struggling with grief who happens to enjoy punching things. And who doesn’t? It’s got a black pantheon of gods, a vast new world, and action that just won’t quit.

I actually have absolutely no negatives about this book? Despite it being kind of long for middle grade, it was over before I even knew it. My only regret is having to wait for the sequel, because October is soooo far away.

❧ Tristan’s voice is just so natural and funny that it grabbed me right away.

This is by far my favorite thing about mid-grade books that we don’t always get in adult: voice. Especially children’s voices. There’s a certain quality to them that I just love so much. (Sarcasm. It’s sarcasm.)

Tristan is a cross between relatable character and snarkmaster, which made him funny without being one-dimensional. And boy did I laugh—so freaking hard—throughout this book.

The book is written as if Tristan Strong is telling the reader a story—his story—and there are plenty of moments where Tristan speaks directly to the reader.

There are plenty of examples of this coming off as kind of weird, but I definitely didn’t have a problem with it here. The voice felt very natural, and the story was almost like sitting around a campfire and having someone tell you how they spent their year. Except … more exciting. No one wants to hear about your trip to Cancun, Steve. No. One.

❧ This book has Gum Baby, and she is … erm … well … a force that you just have to read to truly appreciate, I think.

From what I’ve seen, she seems to be a fan favorite, and it’s easy to see why. Her character is based on what, in some places, might be referred to as a tar baby (though, in the Anansi legend, it’s a gum doll). Regardless of what you call her, Gum Baby is all sass in a very small, sticky frame. From the minute she graced the page, I knew I was going to love her.

In fact, all the side characters in this are inexplicably lovable, even the rude, sarcastic, and potentially villainous ones.

It’s a cast that’s really easy to root for, relate to, get behind, and just plain want to glomp. Although, you take your life in your hands if you attempt that. Still not ruling it out, though. I don’t want to talk about too many of the side characters, because discovering the pantheon for yourself is part of the journey.

What I will say is that one of Tristan’s comrades is Ayanna, who’s a fierce girl about the same age as him, and I really enjoyed her. She was strong, full of spunk, and put herself in danger over and over to save others simply because she could. In a world full of heroes, she’s my hero.

… gosh, that was super cheesy. Just … just move on. There’s no going back now. It’s all downhill from here.

❧ There’s the whole world of Midpass to explore in this book, and it’s as wondrous as it is terrifying, and I never wanted to leave.

I imagine it was more beautiful before things all went sideways. But even still, you can see how it would be a wonderful place to live. Even if the first introduction to Midpass is a life-threatening, semi-terrifying one. I loved the journey through this world and all the new locations and creatures and people that are discovered. It’s giant and vast, and obviously, there’s more bits of it to be uncovered in the subsequent books, and I’m so ready for it.

❧ There’s a whole pantheon of black gods, legends that have come to life, and this was such a refreshing take on mythology.

Listen. I love Western European mythology as much as the next person. The Norse gods were my first loves, particularly Loki. Don’t even pretend to be surprised about that. But I’ve never been able to see myself in Norse gods. The closest I get is maybe relating to Loki, and wow, that’s probably not a good sign.

The pantheon in this book is a mixture of Akan gods (like Anansi the storyteller and Nyame, the sky god) and African American folk legends (like John Henry and Brer Rabbit).

I grew up in a Scotch-Irish household, but I still grew up with these stories, and it was so exciting and nostalgic to get to read about the heroes from the stories I heard or read as a child. I just grew more and more excited as the book went on and I recognized more and more things I was familiar with. The nostalgia is super strong with this one as an adult. As a child? I imagine this would be a great way to explore one’s culture. And if you’ve never heard of these things, regardless of your age? It’s a nice introduction into a rich culture of lore.

❧ Once the action gets going, it just doesn’t stop. Take a deep breath, because you’re going to need it. These waters are turbulent.

If at any moment you think it’s going to be smooth sailing, ha, just turn the page. By the time Tristan hits Midspass, it’s just non-stop action. It doesn’t feel rushed, though. No. It’s just enough to grab your attention and pull you along as these kids face danger and mayhem and do their best to save the world.

There were so many little twists and turns in this, and some of them I guessed pretty early on, but that didn’t impact my enjoyment of it.

Actually, I was maybe even more excited by the reveal to find out that I was right all along, since it was just a hunch. I did like that, for the most part, you have no idea what’s coming, so just like Tristan, you sort of just have to be willing to sit back and go with the flow. I mean, it’s a little easier for us, since we’re not facing against swarms of bugs and laser beams, but hey.

❧ Tristan is a really easy character for anyone to relate to, at any age, and his story will likely win over just about any reader.

What first got me about Tristan, other than his humor and voice, was the fact that he’s a young kid tackling some pretty big grief. Not only did he lose his best friend, but he’s suffering survivor’s guilt, weighed down by the belief that he could’ve saved him. This whole situation was such a gut-punch of emotion, and it got me every time. The most poignant part of this story, to me, was the way Tristan works through his grief, and it would be a perfect read for any middle grade reader doing the same (especially since the grief isn’t the focus of the story, so you can get a little bonus learning smack dab in the middle of an adventure of mythological proportions).

Tristan Strong is also a rather delightful reluctant hero. He’s not a fighter, and he doesn’t consider himself particularly brave or willing to rush into danger.

So, you know, he’s smart. I can’t say that I blame him, because I embody all those characteristics and do it very well, thank you very much. His reactions to each scenario felt so realistic. At no point was he like, “You know what? Giant monsters? Eh, I’ve got this.” Reluctant heroes are my favorite, because they feel more realistic to me. I like to think that most people, when push comes to shove, would come through in some way … but who the heck’s going to choose to charge into a probably lethal situation without a second thought? Okay, Gryffindors, maybe, but still, you guys are anomalies to me.

Because doing a buddy read with me has consequences. You have to pick your life choices carefully folks. I read this as a group buddy read with Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads and Annemieke @ A Dance With Books, and if you click on their names, it’ll take you straight to their reviews. Isn’t that handy?

But because, as I said, reading with me has consequences, I forced them to suffer through a little after-read discussion Q&A. This is spoiler free, so it’s safe to read.

Tristan Strong is an #ownvoices book about folklore and legends Kwame Mbalia heard growing up. So what’s one folklore or story from your childhood that you’d love to read about in a book?

Sammie:
I don’t even remember now where I heard it, but I would love a story about Old Raridan. I grew up in a place where wolves were a thing, and I absolutely fell in love with them from the moment I first saw one. The story of Old Raridan is beautiful and heartbreaking, and I do think it’s inspired some books? But I’d love something more in the style of Tristan Strong about it.

Leelynn:
I’ve read some stories about my favorite childhood story – Sirena the mermaid in Guam, but if there was a longer length novel about her, and what ended up happening after she became a mermaid and all that, I’d totally jump on that so much. There’s also these creatures in Guam called the Duendas (I don’t know if I’m spelling that right, so forgive me) but they are like little creatures that would take children in the night if they were misbehaving. I’d love to read about that because then I can scare some of my cousins 😉

Annemieke:
As a Dutch person I am not sure I remember us having any folklore or legends that I grew up with that was not from The Brothers Grimm and such. I think there might certainly be some older folklore amongst the elder Dutch in the area that I come from but none of that was really ever shared with me.

There were all sorts of story characters come to life in this, plus a smattering of Akan gods. What’s one legendary character or god you’d love to meet face-to-face?

Sammie:
Narrowing it down to just one is really hard, but I’d have to go with Baron Samedi. He’s known for debauchery and obscenity and drinking too much, and if that’s not the perfect combination for a memorable, fun evening, I don’t even know what is.

Leelynn:
I would love to meet Nyame actually. For some reason even though he seems like he’s pretty strict or at least kind of salty because (duh, why wouldn’t he be after his people were enslaved) but I would want to explore his palace and just get to know him more.

Annemieke:
From Tristan Strong? I’d say John Henry or Brer Rabbit. I somehow wonder if I’d get along with Brer Rabbit or if he would like to kick me out of the room haha.  And John Henry just resonated the strongest with me from the Gods.

If you could visit Alke, would you? Why or why not?

Sammie:
Heck. Yes. I would die in approximately 0.3439 seconds, but I’d visit! I’m gonna stay away from some of the scarier places, but some of the civilizations just sound gorgeous. Also, I’m getting in on some of that hoverboard action. Even though it’s 2103% going to end poorly for me.

Leelynn:
Yeah I definitely would. I don’t care that there was some dangerous things happening. Life is dangerous and I could get hurt just stepping outside of my house. I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to go to this world because the chance that I could get hurt. I also have never been to any of the countries in Africa before, which I am dying to do, and this has to be included on that trip.

Annemieke:
Of course. Even though we travelled through Alke quite a bit already in this book I feel like there is still so much left to discover and just visiting Nyame’s palace would be awesome.

Okay, listen, I know the bone ships in this sound terrifying, but if you could be the pirate captain of a bone ship of your choosing, made from the bones of any creature, legendary or otherwise, what would your bone ship look like?!

Sammie:
I’d sail the seas in a giant dragon skull. And at night, I’d light lanterns in the eyes, so everyone can see me coming and quake at my ferocity! Muahahaha!

Leelynn:
Darn it, Sammie stole my answer! Well actually, I don’t know if I would want my bone ship to be made out of dragon bones because that means a dragon died. I need my dragon alive. So I think I’d actually have the one that looks like hands because I’d be using it to terrorize bad people and slamming them into the ocean to never return. Wow, does that sound bad?

Annemieke: 
Having a bone ship made of the bones of my enemies. Kidding. Honestly I don’t think I’d ever be comfortable with a bone ship made of a creature that I admired like dragons or phoenixes so maybe from an evil giant? I mean those bones would make for one epic ship. Though (sea) dragons could totally come and pull my ship forward. Ha.

Last, but still an important question: what was your favorite part of this book?

Sammie:
Tristan’s voice! I just related to him so much as a character, because even though I’m now an adult (technically, against my will), I also have a fear of heights and no desire to be a hero, thanks. Reluctant hero, at best, like Tristan. Plus, I could just relate so much to his struggle with grief and survivor’s guilt!

Leelynn:
Definitely Tristan and his personality. Just like Sammie mentioned his voice specifically, I just felt like he was someone that I could literally meet if I was still working with kids, and him telling me about what happened over his trip to Alabama. He just felt so realistic and someone that I personally wanted to support and I just wanted to give him all the hugs ever because I could only imagine how he was feeling during a lot of the events prior to this book.

Annemieke:
Tristan all the way. From the first moment his voice caught me. I felt for that boy so strongly. His struggles. His feelings. I was quite tempted to put a boot up some Adults and Gods asses for how they responded to him. So yes I felt quite strongly about him as a character.

Have you read any of the Rick Riordan Presents books? What’s your favorite so far? Feel free to answer the discussion questions yourself. I’d love to hear your answers, too.