Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.

Holler of the Fireflies

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
A boy from the hood in Brooklyn travels to a STEM camp in an Appalachian holler for one epic, life-changing summer in this brilliant novel from the award-winning author of The Stars Beneath Our Feet.
Javari knew that West Virginia would be different from his home in Bushwick, Brooklyn. But his first day at STEM Camp in a little Appalachian town is still a shock. Though run-ins with the police are just the same here. Not good.
Javari will learn a lot about science, tech, engineering, and math at camp. And also about rich people, racism, and hidden agendas. But it’s Cricket, a local boy, budding activist, and occasional thief, who will show him a different side of the holler—and blow his mind wide open.
Javari is about to have that summer. Where everything gets messy and complicated and confusing . . . and you wouldn’t want it any other way.
J + C + summer = ∞
  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

  • Formats

  • Languages

  • Levels

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from August 8, 2022
      Moore (The Stars Beneath Our Feet) covers timely social issues in this richly wrought fish-out-of-water story that takes a 12-year-old Brooklynite gamer to Appalachia. After Javari Harris’s family returns from protesting a local event of police brutality, an eviction notice all but seals the family’s ejection from their long-term home in rapidly gentrifying Bushwick. The opportunity to attend a STEM camp at a West Virginia Christian college becomes more appealing when Javari sees an opportunity to win the camp competition’s cash prize and help with back rent. Upon arrival, quiet Javari—who doesn’t like meeting new people and has an unspecified eye condition—meets an assortment of richly limned characters. But it’s Cricket, a light-skinned Black 13-year-old local, who impacts his summer most significantly. Between experiencing Affrilachian culture alongside Cricket and navigating racism at the ethnically diverse camp, Javari encounters ways in which the region’s history intersects with his own. Relational segments engage with Javari’s former Amtrak porter grandfather and the Appalachian town’s local residents, interweaving realities around colorism and racism, corporate ethics and pollution, generational trauma, and opioids in a complex novel that effectively highlights how long-standing histories can connect and divide. Ages 8–12. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Zeno Robinson perfectly portrays 12-year-old Javari Harris in this engaging, thought-provoking listen. Javari, who lives with his family in Bushwick, Brooklyn, has the opportunity to attend a STEM summer camp in West Virginia. Robinson's portrayal of Javari is authentic and multilayered as the boy finds himself in the heart of Appalachia and engages with compelling and well-developed characters at camp and beyond. Javari's journey is about so much more than STEM camp. It touches on what remains the same regardless of geography: racism, class differences, police violence, and poverty. Robinson particularly shines at delivering Javari's interactions with Cricket, a boy who shows Javari the "real" Appalachia and helps increase his awareness of issues of social and environmental justice. K.S.M. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:670
  • Text Difficulty:3

Loading
The Beehive Library Consortium is a consortium of member libraries and the Utah State Library Division.Funds for this program were made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Parents should be aware that children have access to all materials in the online library. The Beehive Library Consortium does not monitor or restrict your child's selections. It is your responsibility as a parent to be aware of what your child is checking out and viewing.