Since its first publication in 1995, Seth and Samona has been lavished with critical praise, with its admirers only infrequently able to find small points to question. The book's publisher, Delacorte Press, awarded it the second annual Marguarite de Angeli Prize for that year. It has become a staple on lists of books that offer multicultural views to school children and among books concerned with bringing the Haitian experience to readers of all ages. Most reviewers have felt that this novel offers compelling characterizations, realistic situations and a look at the lives of blacks in America, Haitian-Americans in particular, that looks at important social issues without preaching. As the review in the School Library Journal explained it for library purchasing boards that were considering this book for their collection, "the dialog and characterizations combine flawlessly to give Seth a loud, clear voice; through him, readers come to...