Ebony Elizabeth Thomas is Associate Professor in the Literacy, Culture, and International Educational Division at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. A former Detroit Public Schools teacher and National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, she is an expert on diversity in children’s literature, youth media, and fan studies.
"One of the most radiant and thought-provoking descriptions of the
potentials of fantastic literature."
*LA Review of Books*
"The Dark Fantastic will entirely change the way you read science
fiction, fantasy, [and] horror, and I can absolutely assure you it
will be for the better."
*BookRiot*
"The Dark Fantastic is a wakeup call to all who research, teach, or
create young adult speculative fiction ... Thomas issues a call to
decolonize the speculative fiction genre and to ensure more texts,
films, and television shows that include a Black female protagonist
become the norm to influence a new generation of readers and
writers. The Dark Fantastic is a must-read."
*Booklist*
"One of the most brilliant and woke explorations of race and
speculative fiction I've ever read. Thomas breaks down the history
of fantasy and imagination and shows us how far we have to go with
such patience and clarity I felt like I was sitting beside her,
growing smarter with each word."
*Brown Girl Dreaming*
"If you care about thoughtfully engaging with race, Harry Potter,
and fandom, you definitely need to check out The Dark
Fantastic."
*Mugglenet*
"By bridging pop culture, personal experience, and academic study,
The Dark Fantastic provides a crucial examination of race and
storytelling in sci-fi fantasy media aimed at teens and young
adults. Not only does Thomas discuss how Black characters are
erased in an inescapable cycle, but she also provides a guide to
breaking it."
*Brain Mill Press Voices*
"Thomas synthesizes theory from several disciplines to build her
model of “the dark fantastic”—a cycle in which Black female
characters are sidelined in mainstream fantasy narratives for young
adults. … Valuable for introducing readers to a range of concepts,
this is an important work of criticism on an underexamined
topic."
*School Library Journal*
"A creative blend of autoethnography, literary analysis, and
counter-storytelling, this volume is intriguing, accessible, and
raises important questions that will likely generate additional
research on this topic... A must read, especially for current and
future educators."
*Choice*
"Timely and beautifully written book [...] Powerfully addresses the
imagination gap in white writers’ use of Black characters as props
to demonstrate aspects of white protagonists’ character
development, often through violence wrecked upon Black bodies. This
book should be in the library of any university teaching Children’s
literature or Fantasy literature, and on the reading list of any
courses in those two areas."
*Fantastika Journal*
"Thorough, creative, and revolutionary, The Dark Fantastic
addresses the & imagination gap that plagues the majority of
children's and YA media, which erases and mutes the stories and
agency of black characters. From Harry Potter to The Hunger Games,
Ebony Elizabeth Thomas sheds light on the dark fantastic to point
scholars and fans toward a world where we can all experience and be
liberated by the power of magic."
*Ghost Summer: Stories*
"A compelling work of criticism, autoethnography, and
counter-storytelling. Ebony Elizabeth Thomas reads within and
across novels, film, television, fanfiction, the writers who create
them, and online communities in order to explore the & role of race
in the collective literary imagination. Thomas powerfully
introduces the concept of the imagination gap and articulates its
implications for the culture as a whole, recognizing the power and
necessity of new stories capable of remaking the world."
*In the Wake: On Blackness and Being*
"A compelling synthesis of speculative fiction, critical race
theory, autobiography, and fantasy, The Dark Fantastic provides a
powerful diagnosis of how racial difference shapes our
imaginations. If you are looking for ways to repair the damage
wrought by the lack of diversity in popular culture, there's no
better place to begin."
*Was the Cat in the Hat Black?*
"The form of this piece of scholarly activism is as fresh as its
scholarly content; Thomas has a strong authorial voice and uses it
eloquently, lightly, and without pretension, making this necessary
book accessible to a much wider audience than children’s literature
scholars. The Dark Fantastic is a transformative and democratising
work in the public humanities, emancipated from stagnant academic
notions."
*International Research in Children’s Literature*
"The Dark Fantastic is a timely entree into the literature on
speculative and fantastic fictions, and it does exactly what it
sets out to do…As fantastical and speculative fictions become more
popular, this text is sure to become a must read for scholars,
teachers, and readers of the fantastical."
*The Journal of African American History*
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