Paradise on Fire by Jewell Parker Rhodes (review)

After her parents’ death in an apartment fire, Adaugo, known as Addy, is hypervigilant about mapping her surroundings and identifying escape routes (“No matter what: Escape. Survive”). Now she’s thousands of miles away from her Bronx home in a summer program called Wilderness Adventures, which allows Addy’s group of urban Black kids to experience the California wild. Addy takes to the wilderness like a duck to water, reveling in exploring her surroundings and cartographically comprehending the untamed country around her. When a group camping trip turns into a frenzied flight from a wildfire, will Addy’s skills save her and her new friends? Rhodes has a knack for disaster stories with real-life implications, and Addy is an original character whose focus on control is plausible and plausibly advantageous in this very different milieu. The kids are a reasonably individuated bunch, and it’s a nice touch that Addy’s abilities are respected by most of the group when the time comes. The escape itself is harrowing, and the book doesn’t pull any punches about the price and fury of wildfires. Addy’s (and the author’s) clear love of the natural world shines throughout, balancing the pounding adventure with respect and appreciation. Readers may not want to race a wildfire, but they’ll definitely long to hit the hills with Addy. Rhodes appends a detailed note about wildfires, climate change, and systemic racism’s effects on minority access to nature.