53 pages • 1 hour read
B. B. AlstonAmari And The Great Game
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Vladimir’s Crown
Vladimir’s “shimmering black crown” (63) is presented to Amari by Cozmo, the steward of the League of Magicians. It is an ancient artifact that has been passed down through generations and is fated to be taken up by a born magician, i.e., Amari or Dylan. Cozmo explains:
The League has passed down Vladimir’s magic through the generations. But it’s still Vladimir’s—whoever wears his Crown can summon all of it. Your spells wouldn’t merely draw upon the magic in your own blood as they do now, but on that of hundreds of magicians. I’d claim this power for myself if I could, but the Crown can be worn only by a born magician (64).
Amari is initially daunted by the responsibility of wearing the crown and refuses it, but Dylan plans to use it to raise an army and start a war. Torn between her desire for peace and her responsibility, Amari agrees to enter the Great Game. The game is an ancient ritual designed to determine which of the two living magicians—Amari or Dylan—is worthy of Vladimir’s Crown. As a test of worthiness, the series of magical challenges symbolizes Amari’s growth throughout the novel as she learns to embrace and control her powers and, through them, her emotions.
Narratively speaking, the crown is a symbol of power, both magical and political, compounded by The Impact of Cultural and Historical Legacy. As far as Amari’s character arc is concerned, it also represents her gradual acceptance of the responsibility that comes with being a magician. At the end of the story, Amari loses the game, but she realizes that her true power does not lie in a mere symbolic crown. Instead, it comes from her inner strength and her loved ones’ unconditional support.
Badges
Throughout the novel, badges and pins are used by different characters to represent their support for various social and political causes. This plays into The Fight for Social Justice. At the beginning of the story, for example, the Junior Agents wear pins that show which social clubs they belong to, like Amari’s gold star Elite pin. However, this can cause tension when characters use those symbols to enforce social hierarchies.
Later in the story, factions begin to emerge between the students who side with Amari and the UnWanteds, and others who side with Bane:
I notice Julia skipping through the food court with her own Nobody’s UnWanted pin on her Junior Undertaker cloak. [Lots] of kids have created their own versions and are pinning them to their uniforms outside class. Unfortunately, just as many I Support Bane badges are popping up too (339).
These badges become a way to signal political identity as the students sort themselves into opposing groups. Badges are also imposed by authorities as a way to reinforce official hierarchies. After Amari accidentally conjures a rainstorm she can’t stop, Bane forces her to wear a bright red badge with the word Dangerous on it—a punishment that feels reminiscent of real-life authoritarian policies such as those enforced by the Nazi regime during World War II. Amari comments on how differently she is treated depending on what badge she is wearing. Whereas “it did feel nice getting to wear that Elites badge and have people just automatically be nice to [her]” (293), wearing the Dangerous badge excludes her from most social activities. In short, the narrative uses badges and pins as a visible symbol to illustrate various reactions to social hierarchies, oppression, and authoritarianism.
Magic
In B. B. Alston’s Supernatural Investigations series, magic can be read as a symbolic force in Amari’s character arc. The social stigma against her magical abilities sets her apart from other supernatural beings, leading to her marginalization within the supernatural world. Amari faces prejudice and is intent on working toward social justice. The treatment of magicians in Alston’s world echoes the treatment of marginalized communities in the real world. While most magicians live in hiding for fear of being harmed, like the League of Magicians, a few are paraded as token success stories, like Amari and Maria, until they start openly defying the system.
Magic also has a significant role in Amari’s emotional journey. Maria explains that “essentially fair magick is selfless where foul magick is selfish. Fair magicians seek to use magic to benefit the world around us. Foul magicians use it for their own gain, at the expense of others” (150). Magic can therefore be equated with morality, and as Amari comes of age and develops her identity, she must choose which kind of magician she wants to be. This is not as simple a choice as it first appears to her—the temptation to be selfish or to give in to negative emotions is ever-present: “Being good is a choice [and] it’s one you have to keep making, again and again. No matter how hard it gets. However tempting it is to let the darkness win” (152). At the end of the story, Amari almost gives in to foul magick—and to her darker impulses, like anger and vengeance—before she is brought back to the good/moral side by Elsie’s warning. Though Amari loses her magic in the final confrontation with Dylan, she never loses her inner strength or the supportive relationships she has built. The ending suggests that these are the true sources of her power.
