53 pages • 1 hour read
B. B. AlstonAmari And The Great Game
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Finding Identity and Belonging Through Adversity
Amari and the Great Game offers insight into Amari’s emotional journey through first-person narration and themes that revolve around identity and growth. Amari, the protagonist, is marginalized in the “real” world as a young Black girl and in the supernatural world as a magician. As a result, she faces prejudice from her peers as well as from authority figures like Harlowe and Bane. This discriminatory treatment significantly impacts Amari’s self-perception, and her coming-of-age process involves building a sense of self in defiance of the stereotypes that others thrust upon her. Her character arc demonstrates how individuals can build their identity by overcoming adversity.
In the supernatural world, Amari is part of the “UnWanteds,” a term that describes individuals stereotyped as dangerous or evil. Amari explains how the UnWanteds of her generation are held responsible for the actions of individuals who lived centuries in the past: “[I]t’s the UnWanteds’ descendants being punished now, and they didn’t choose to be UnWanteds any more than I chose to be a magician. Yet we’re considered illegal simply for existing” (52). Amari’s statement points to the injustice of a legal designation that punishes people not for their actions but for their identity. Throughout the novel, Amari strives to prove that she is morally good while noting the unfairness of a system that requires her to prove her goodness while it assumes the goodness of others. She faces obstacles such as Bane’s restrictive policies, Harlowe’s manipulation of the media, and exclusion from social clubs.
Despite her circumstances, Amari becomes more mature and confident as she grows. While standing up to Director Van Helsing, for example, the young girl comments: “I resist the urge to shrink away. That’s what I would’ve done last summer, when I didn’t feel like I belonged. But now I know that’s not true—I’ve got a moonstone badge, I made Junior Agent, and now I’m an Elite” (113). Amari relies on her personal achievements, strength of character, and friendships to assert her place in the supernatural world. The narrative therefore suggests that she develops her identity through her response to adversity, by making moral, selfless choices rather than giving in to her anger and fear. This is made particularly evident through the symbolism of fair and foul magicks, as Amari’s spellbook explains: “[W]hen we give in to fear and anger, is not our first instinct to be selfish? To put ourselves first and lash out at whatever is causing our discomfort? The only way to truly master the weather is to first master yourself” (259). By developing this self-mastery, Amari also develops a stable sense of self that she can be proud of.
At the end of the book, Amari is seemingly defeated: She has lost Vladimir’s Crown to Dylan, lost her magical abilities, and failed to prevent a war in the supernatural world. However, Amari’s identity is strengthened by her friends’ unconditional support. Her brother points out that she is “surrounded by folks who still very much believe in Amari Peters” (422-23), and Amari realizes that her true power lies in her character and her community, rather than in her magic or her status. The novel therefore explores how an individual’s response to adversity shapes their identity, from Amari’s willingness to fight injustice to Dylan succumbing to his fear and bitterness.
The Impact of Familial and Cultural Legacy
Amari and the Great Game explores the impact of family and cultural legacy on different characters’ identities and choices. Amari and Dylan, as well as the Van Helsing family, are the two most significant examples in the novel.
First, Cozmo tells Amari: “There are only ever two born magicians in an age—you and Dylan now, and the Night Brothers before you” (61). The Night Brothers are known throughout the supernatural world for having possessed great power and done great evil. Through their mere existence, Amari and Dylan have therefore inherited a strong historical and cultural legacy—one with moral implications that they must choose either to embrace or resist. Their connection to this legacy is further emphasized by the Great Game, which highlights both their differences and their similarities and culminates in a climactic fight. The parallels between historical events and current stakes also imbue Amari and Dylan’s dynamic with a mythical, almost divine quality. Additionally, the effects of the Ancient Wars are still felt in the supernatural world. Magicians are generally hated and feared and that prejudice is heightened when Bane, who holds a personal grudge against magicians, comes to power. Amari struggles with the legacy of the magicians who have come before her, and her battle against social prejudice forces her to develop her identity through adversity.
In addition to cultural legacy, the Van Helsings also effectively illustrate the dangers of family legacy. Director Van Helsing is known to be controlling, cold, and concerned with his family’s reputation above all else. As a result, he rejects two of his children, Maria and Dylan, who are magicians and therefore ostracized by the supernatural community. Amari remarks with sadness that “preserving his worldview is more important” to the Director than caring for his own children (112). The status of magicians and other UnWanteds throughout the novel suggests that an inflexible view of legacy can easily shade into prejudice.
In fact, Dylan’s fear of his father is one of his principal motivations for learning foul magick. Unable to face his father’s rejection, Dylan sought refuge with Moreau and gave in to his own hatred and selfishness. On the other hand, Maria was driven to perform as a model agent, and became part of one of the most heroic duos, VanQuish, alongside Quinton Peters. Despite her popularity and success, however, Director Van Helsing still repudiates her when Maria defies Bane’s authority, thus revealing that he values his family’s name over their accomplishments or relationships. Lara Van Helsing, his third child, is also torn between her loyalty to her father and her morality. In the previous book in the series, she acted as a cruel and violent bully. In Amari and the Great Game, however, Lara redeems herself. Significantly, she rejects her family’s legacy as prominent members of the supernatural society, as well as the historical legacy that paints Amari as an inherent enemy.
In short, several characters are depicted struggling with the pressure of family expectations and cultural prejudice, and their responses inform their emotional journeys. Whereas Dylan, for instance, gives in to anger and becomes an antagonist, Lara instead embraces her friendships and turns into one of Amari’s closest friends.
The Fight for Social Justice
Amari and the Great Game explores the ways in which Amari, a marginalized protagonist, navigates the supernatural world, where she encounters prejudice and oppression as well as resistance and community. Indeed, Amari is perceived as an inherent threat simply because she was born a magician: “[T]here are still folks who will always hate me for being a magician like the Night Brothers. No matter what I do” (10). No matter how hard she works to earn the trust and respect of those around her, Amari knows that she will never fully escape prejudice. As a result, the supernatural world is highly hierarchical and segregated. As Harlowe states: “Even among Elites, we aren’t all equal” (112). Additionally, the League of Magicians keeps magicians’ identities secret for fear of persecution. Along with other supernatural beings, they are deemed “UnWanted,” a pejorative term which can be equated to a slur. Finally, Bane’s restrictive, exclusionary policies represent a form of nationalism and bigotry that promotes the supremacy of certain types of supernatural beings over others.
These narrative elements draw symbolic parallels between the oppression faced by UnWanteds and real-life power dynamics between dominant and marginalized groups. Harlowe recognizes the parallels between the racism Amari faces in the ordinary world and the prejudice she faces as a magician in the supernatural world, and she seeks to exploit these parallels for propaganda value:
a poor Black girl who comes to the Bureau and learns she’s a magician—the enemy of the supernatural world—only to save us all from Dylan’s awful plot! Why, it’s positively marvelous! Movies aren’t written so well! (232).
Harlowe’s statement almost breaks the fourth wall by highlighting the parallels between fiction and real life and, by extension, between being a magician and being a Black girl in the United States.
Unwilling to accept a world structured by unjust hierarchies, Amari and her friends fight for social justice. Amari, for instance, refuses to let an innocent UnWanted be deported and helps him escape the authorities. She also notes acts of resistance among the students:
[Julia is] wearing a Unite for UnWanteds T-shirt and explains that they have a podcast and do livestreams where they fight for those who can’t fight for themselves. It’s so cool to see somebody have the courage to speak out about the change they want to see in the world (109).
These acts of rebellion against the oppressive system inspire Amari to stand up for herself and others, and they remind her that not everyone agrees with the stereotypes applied to UnWanteds. Amari gives a speech on Julia’s livestream and defends Maria publicly after Harlowe denounces her as a traitor, showcasing her courage in the face of systemic injustice. Badges are also used in the narrative to symbolize different characters’ allegiances and political stances. Through community and organized resistance, Amari and her allies promote social justice whereas the antagonists—Dylan, Harlowe, Bane, and Director Van Helsing—only sow division and hatred. As a result, the novel offers a symbolic depiction of a protagonist fighting for fairness and inclusion against an oppressive system.
