fiction
The Death of Vivek Oji begins at the end, with Vivek’s body
appearing at the front door of his parents’ house. The novel then describes the
highlights of Vivek’s and his family members’ lives in Nigeria.
Vivek’s story was a sad one. As a person figuring out his
gender identity, he encountered many difficulties when it came to other
people’s expectations and interpretations of his behaviors. His personal
relationships were complicated and he struggled with some sort of unexplored
health issue as well. I must be careful about what I divulge in this review
because, with such a short novel focusing on the mystery of his death and his
brief life, I run the risk of ruining any surprises.
I’d not read anything like this from an African perspective
which made it especially interesting. I felt that there were many topics
raised—some, perhaps, more applicable to Africa than elsewhere. But the story
highlighted ways in which people can hurt each other which made me sad. True,
it showed some beautiful, accepting relationships. But it was the lack of
compassion and people behaving badly that stood out to me. I questioned why Akwaeke Emezi brought up some
character backgrounds and tangential stories that had nothing to do with the
main storyline. But I enjoyed the recurring theme of photographs and the way
the author evoked imagery through her writing. It was a beautifully-written, tragic tale.
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