King and the Dragonflies Summary
Kacen Callender

King and the Dragonflies Overview

In this middle grade novel, author Kacen Callender introduces Kingston "King" James, a young Black Louisiana native, who must discover how to heal himself and his parents after the loss of his older brother, Khalid. In unravelling the ways a loved one's death alters a person's life, King realizes that he is not the only person experiencing grief in his hometown when confronted with the sudden disappearance of his classmate and former friend, Sandy Sanders. As King searches for Sandy, he is forced to adapt to life without his brother and discover more about who he is now that his brother is not there to guide him as a growing Black boy in an often racist world. In this novel, Callender explores themes like prejudice, loss, and reckoning with one's true self.