Ikenga

 Nnamdi's father was a great police chief.  Kalaria is full of powerful criminals, and Nnamdi's father seemed like the only person who was willing to stand up to them until he was murdered.  When the Chief of Chiefs shows up to the funeral flashing a ring that looks suspiciously like his father's, Nnamdi is convinced the chief criminal of Kalaria killed his father.  

For a year Nnamdi stews in his anger.  Things have only gotten worse in Kalaria with criminals shamelessly doing business in broad daylight.  Nnamdi is frustrated and angry until the night his father's spirit appears to him and gives him the Ikenga.  The strange little carving allows Nnamdi to transform into the Man when danger is near.  He becomes tall and powerful with a shape darker than shadow.

Nnamdi thinks this is the solution.  He will clean up Kalaria and take down his father's murderer, but the local newspaper begins publishing stories that make the criminals look like victims and the Man look like the villain.  He can't believe it when he hears people agreeing with this nonsense.

The anger that fuels the man begins to spill over into Nnamdi's life and he nearly hurts his best friend.  Will he be able to master his anger, protect the people of Kalaria, and take down his father's killer?

Nnedi Okorafor's new middle grade novel is a superhero origin story with a Nigerian twist.  Nnamdi loves American comic books, but the story is firmly rooted in Nigerian culture.  I love the cast of villains with their creative names and abilities.  I will definitely put this book in the library and recommend it to kids, but the plot seems to meander aimlessly for a while, and Nnamdi's anger issues are never really addressed.  I kept waiting for things to go horribly wrong.