A review by jayisreading
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.75

It’s one thing to be looked at, and another to be seen.

Open Water was a beautiful homage to Black love, Black tenderness, and Black art. Azumah Nelson’s prose was just stunning and dreamlike, especially how he captures the intimacy that comes with falling in love. So much of it came down to the little details that one notices about their beloved that I thought was so beautifully captured. I think what made this novel all the more intimate was a result of it being written in second person, positioning the reader to really experience how the narrator feels, the sensation that comes with being seen with such care and tenderness by a lover.

This novel is also a celebration of Black art. Azumah Nelson wonderfully weaves into his story the works of Black creatives including but not limited to James Baldwin, Barry Jenkins, Kelsey Lu, and more. In many ways, I felt the choice to make the main characters of this novel be artists themselves was a subtle yet powerful way for Azumah Nelson to show how Black artists continue the tradition to shape the beauty of Blackness.

Open Water explored other themes as well, such as Black masculinity and being Black in the United Kingdom. I did feel that these were a little too subtly addressed, perhaps a result of the novel’s primary focus being on a relationship. I think a part of me wanted this novel to be a little longer, as a result, to see how Azumah Nelson could have gone more in depth with these themes. I also wish the characters were a little more developed, just to see a clearer progress in the story.

I will say that Azumah Nelson has a distinct writing style that will work for some readers, while others may find it incredibly off-putting, whether it be because of the second-person narrative or the admittedly very purple prose (or perhaps both). I think convincing second-person narratives are quite difficult to write, but I thought Azumah Nelson handled it really well to fit the story he wanted to tell. I also really appreciated the prose (even if it did, at times, get a little too lyrical), and I could see how he was heavily influenced by other Black writers.

This was a really powerful debut novel, and I really look forward to reading more of Azumah Nelson’s writings in the near future.
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