A review by sarahmatthews
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson

medium-paced

Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson

Read in Braille

Viking Books

Pub. 2021, 145pp

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This novella was a compelling read from start to finish, breathtakingly good. It’s a coming of age love story, and an exploration of what it is to be a young Black British man living in south east London. The writing is very poetic and the voice so strong.

The main characters are unnamed and it’s written in the second person, something I’ve come across in books that switch perspective during the story but I don’t think I’ve ever read a full book written in this way before. I found it very effective, helping to get into the head of the main character as he navigates the upheavals inn his life and experiences love for the first time.

The main character, a recent graduate working as a freelance photographer and at Nike Town in central London, meets a woman at a party but the timing couldn’t be worse; she’s dating his mate and is partway through her degree in Dublin. They strike up a friendship which can’t help but develop into a deep connection.

I know this area of London well but this is a very different experience to my own, as a middle aged white woman, and reading about the day to day fears of being stopped by the police for just existing in the world was very impactful. Fitting a profile, being wrongly identified over and over and the toll that takes. The exploration of grief, trauma, injustice, and loss was beautifully expressed throughout.

Art, literature, film and music are important in these character’s lives and are woven into the narrative; I found myself playing the tracks mentioned in the background on Spotify to add to the atmosphere.

There’s some gorgeous writing about relationships:

“The two of you, like headphone wires tangling, caught up in this something. A happy accident. A messy miracle.”

“You know that to love is both to swim and to drown. You know to love is to be a whole, partial, a joint, a fracture, a heart, a bone… It is to place someone next to your beating heart, in the absolute darkness of your inner, and trust they will hold you close… You knew what you were getting into, but taking the Underground, returning home with no certainty of when you will see her next, it is terrifying.”

And I love this little piece when they’re getting late night snacks:

“… you are sat outside her apartment block, watching a dog dance across the lawn with the moon as his spotlight.”

These characters got under my skin and I really felt like I new them. Oh, and the inclusion of an author signing by Zadie Smith was very enjoyable.

As one repeated refrain says, summing up the book:

“It is one thing to be looked at, and another to be seen.”

Highly recommended, and one not to rush through!