Wilmington writer scores with tale of good-hearted, ambitious teen in 'Mango All the Time'
Since moving to Wilmington a few years back, Fracaswell Hyman has been a familiar face in the Port City.
He played Hoke in last year's Thalian Association production of the play "Driving Miss Daisy," and he was emcee for the StarNews Wilmington Theater Awards in March of 2020.
In a separate life, Hyman — a native of Wilson, N.C. — has been a writer or producer for a number of TV shows, including "The Famous Jett Jackson" for The Disney Channel, "Gullah Gullah Island" for Nickelodeon and "Romeo" for Teen Nick. More recently, he's directed "Bookmarks — Celebrating Black Writers" for Netflix.
Along the way, Hyman has penned a series of children's books starring Mango Delight Fuller, a pretty, good-hearted and talented seventh-grader. (Mango Delight? Well, her Jamaican-born dad is a chef and caterer.)
In "Mango Delight" (2018), she tried out for the middle-school play, and made it. In Mango in the City (2020), she made it to the New York stage (well, Off-Off-Off-Broadway, but still.) Now, in "Mango All the Time," the third and final book in the series, she makes it to Hollywood.
More: Thalian Association's 'Driving Miss Daisy' reckons, lightly, with South's legacy of racism
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In the new novel, a friend from the New York production arranges for Mango to audition for a part in a new cable show. (It sounds like a time-traveling version of "Hannah Montana.") She flies out to Los Angeles with her dad and her best friend, T.J.
Unfortunately, Mango's screen test bombs. But then she gets a chance to sing at the Hollywood Bowl. And when the star of the series drops out, the producers want to cast Mango in the lead.
It's like a dream come true, but ... Working in Hollywood would mean the whole family relocating to the Coast. Mango would have to say goodbye to her friends at Trueheart Middle School. Being tutored between shooting sessions, she'd miss most of the ordinary school experiences. Being a star can be lonely. Mango has to decide if this is for her.
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Hyman certainly knows his territory, and his images of life on a soundstage are convincing. Meanwhile, Mango has to cope with very real challenges for someone who's 12 and three-quarters years old. She runs into mean girl divas and dreamboat guys who turn out to be jerks. She runs into roadblocks but, with support from her dad (and his silly jokes), she bounces back.
Hyman has Mango note how many African Americans have jobs in the TV and film industry, including management positions. Some of the plot echoes a lot of old Hollywood movies, which is probably intentional. But Hyman's young audience almost certainly hasn't seen those movies, so "Mango All the Time" will seem fresh and new to them.
The book underlines the message that dreams can come true — but you have to work hard for them.
'Building a Legacy'
Veteran educator Bertha Todd has written and self-published a history of the Wilmington chapter of The Links Inc., the national service organization for African American women.
"Building a Legacy of Friendship and Service for 70 Years" marks the anniversary of the chapter's founding in 1951, just five years after the launch of the national organization. Among the charter members were Celeste Barnett Eaton, wife of the civil rights leader Dr. Hubert Eaton Sr., and B. Constance O'Dell.
Copies of the new book may be ordered from any Links member or by calling 910-216-0409.
BOOK REVIEW
'MANGO ALL THE TIME'
By Fracaswell Hyman
Sterling, $18
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: New YA novel from Fracaswell Hyman 'Mango All the Time' is a delight
