Scan barcode
A review by reading_and_roaming20
Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
FRESHWATER is a wholly original piece of work. AKWAEKE EMEZI does a masterful job weaving together multiple perspectives to give a sense of the whole of Ada, a girl born with a foot in another world and god inside of her.
Their writing style is direct yet poetic. I couldn’t get enough. Fans of THE DEATH OF VIVEK OJI who have not yet grabbed this one should absolutely make sure it’s on their lists.
To really grasp what EMEZI has done here, I’d highly highly highly recommend you do a bit of reading into ọgbanje. The most concise definition I’ve found is within @book.ishkary’s review of FRESHWATER ::
“Creatures of God with power over mortals…they are not subject to the laws of justice and have no moral scruples, causing harm without justification.”
The story is a dark one, touching on many difficult topics. What made it all the more heavy to read was knowing that EMEZI believes that they are ọgbanje. With this in the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but wonder how much of this work of fiction is a recreation of EMEZI’s life experiences. That thought made this an even more emotional read.
I definitely needed to be in the right mindset to dive into this and I’m grateful that I picked it up at just the right time. This book will certainly stay with me.
NOTE :: Please be sure to look into content warnings prior to reading.
Their writing style is direct yet poetic. I couldn’t get enough. Fans of THE DEATH OF VIVEK OJI who have not yet grabbed this one should absolutely make sure it’s on their lists.
To really grasp what EMEZI has done here, I’d highly highly highly recommend you do a bit of reading into ọgbanje. The most concise definition I’ve found is within @book.ishkary’s review of FRESHWATER ::
“Creatures of God with power over mortals…they are not subject to the laws of justice and have no moral scruples, causing harm without justification.”
The story is a dark one, touching on many difficult topics. What made it all the more heavy to read was knowing that EMEZI believes that they are ọgbanje. With this in the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but wonder how much of this work of fiction is a recreation of EMEZI’s life experiences. That thought made this an even more emotional read.
I definitely needed to be in the right mindset to dive into this and I’m grateful that I picked it up at just the right time. This book will certainly stay with me.
NOTE :: Please be sure to look into content warnings prior to reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide