In darkness I count my blessings like Manman taught me. One: I am alive. Two: there is no two. In the aftermath of the Haitian earthquake a boy is trapped beneath the rubble of a ruined hospital: thirsty, terrified and alone. 'Shorty' is a child of the slums, a teenage boy who has seen enough violence to last a lifetime, and who has been inexorably drawn into the world of the gangsters who rule Site Soleil: men who dole out money with one hand and death with the other. But Shorty has a secret: a flame of revenge that blazes inside him and a burning wish to find the twin sister he lost five years ago. And he is marked. Marked in a way that links him with Toussaint L'Ouverture, the Haitian rebel who two-hundred years ago led the slave revolt and faced down Napoleon to force the French out of Haiti. As he grows weaker, Shorty relives the journey that took him to the hospital, a bullet wound in his arm. In his visions and memories he hopes to find the strength to survive, and perhaps then Toussaint can find a way to be free ...
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When this was announced as the Printz winner for 2013, I have to admit to being both surprised and sad. I wanted my favorite ([b:Code Name Verity|12851538|Code Name Verity|Elizabeth Wein|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1337032835s/12851538.jpg|16885788]) to win and In Darkness was one that even belonging to a group dedicated to reading the notable books for the year hadn't introduced me to. Now I get it. In Darkness deserved to win the Printz award and it deserves a lot more attention than it's getting. The problem is that I don't think the combination of Haitian boy trapped in an earthquake and the story of Toussaint l'Ouverture (leader of the slave rebellion on Haiti in the 18th century) is one that appeals to very many teens. Our library owns two copies and together they've been checked out maybe 5 times. I hope that being forced to read it for a class doesn't ruin it for teens because the story is gripping, heartbreaking and absolutely amazing. The story moves back and forth between Shorty, a Haitian boy who has only known a life of poverty, violence and gangs, and who is trapped in a building which collapsed during a violent earthquake in 2010 and Toussaint l'Ouverture, who is trying to liberate his fellow slaves at the age of 54 and maintain their freedom when most of the world powers want the profit they can provide. The story is nuanced and the shades of grey are entirely appropriate to undestanding the two worlds: Shorty's world in which the government does nothing to provide for the poor and they are forced to turn to gangs to get basic needs like food, water and education and Toussaint's world in which being black makes you less than human. There is a mystical connection between the two and the use of both French and Creole language makes the two stories feel intensely real. If you're at all a fan of Young Adult or historical fiction, I cannot recommend this book enough. It's not easy and it doesn't offer solutions to many of the huge problems the characters (and the real Haiti) face but I hope you love it as much as I did.
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