The Dark Fantastic, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas
The Dark Fantastic, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas
2 Rating(s)
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The Dark Fantastic
Race and the Imagination from Harry Potter to the Hunger Games

Author: Ebony Elizabeth Thomas

Narrator: Janina Edwards

Unabridged: 7 hr 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/15/2019

Synopsis

Stories provide portals into other worlds, both real and imagined. The promise of escape draws people from all backgrounds to speculative fiction, but when people of color seek passageways into the fantastic, the doors are often barred. This problem lies not only with children's publishing, but also with the television and film executives tasked with adapting these stories into a visual world. When characters of color do appear, they are often marginalized or subjected to violence, reinforcing for audiences that not all lives matter.

The Dark Fantastic is an engaging and provocative exploration of race in popular youth and young adult speculative fiction. Grounded in her experiences as YA novelist, fanfiction writer, and scholar of education, Thomas considers four black girl protagonists from some of the most popular stories of the early twenty-first century: Bonnie Bennett from the CW's The Vampire Diaries, Rue from Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games, Gwen from the BBC's Merlin, and Angelina Johnson from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter. Analyzing their narratives and audience reactions to them reveals how these characters mirror the violence against black and brown people in our own world.

About Ebony Elizabeth Thomas

Ebony Elizabeth Thomas is Associate Professor in the Literacy, Culture, and International Educational Division at the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education. A former Detroit Public Schools teacher and National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, she is an expert on diversity in children's literature, youth media, and fan studies.

Reviews

Goodreads review by S.R. on March 15, 2019

I’m going to write a longer review for Research on Diversity in Youth Literature, but I want to put a shorter one here since I just finished it about 30 minutes ago. As a Black girl nerd, I was beyond excited when I heard that this book was going to be a thing. I truly felt seen, like someone was goi......more

Goodreads review by Julie on February 02, 2019

I came to this book for two reasons. One is that I’m a fan of BBC "Merlin", and I was happy to see the show finally being considered in an academic work. The other is that I’m a writer, and a White person, who is interested in writing non-White characters and mixed-race relationships – and the more......more

Goodreads review by Meagan on February 26, 2020

#2 out 12 for my non fiction goal for the year This was brilliant. I will definitely have to reread this and try to apply some of the concepts to adult media as this focused on the YA genre exclusively. The only downside was the emphasis on fanfic. I wasn't expecting it and while it was interesting a......more

Goodreads review by Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) on January 16, 2023

The Dark Fantastic explores the way race is used in popular fantasy or dystopian media- specifically the treatment of Black characters. While some parts of the book feel underdeveloped, I still think this is well worth your time. It takes a more academic approach, referencing fandom theory and media......more

Goodreads review by Monica **can't read fast enough** on August 22, 2019

3 1/2 stars THE DARK FANTASTIC points out the shortcomings, failures, and the too slow expansion of diversity and authors of color getting much needed exposure and support. This did read much like a timely academic study with a few personal anecdotes added. If you are a fan of literary criticism and......more

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