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A review by kjulie
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really wanted to like this.
I was looking forward to it, but it just didn’t connect with me. I think my biggest hang up was the 2nd person narration. The author seemed to be trying to establish a sense of intimacy through that choice (and from the look of some reviews, it absolutely worked for other people), but it created distance during my reading.
I was also not expecting such an dark emotional journey, and that’s totally on me. I thought this would be uplifting (not really sure why, the synopsis literally says: “But two people who seem destined to be together can still be torn apart by fear and violence”), but instead it was a tragic love story and an exploration of trauma and the Black body.
I think that if I ever decide to give this a second read, knowing what it really is, I might understand it better.
I was looking forward to it, but it just didn’t connect with me. I think my biggest hang up was the 2nd person narration. The author seemed to be trying to establish a sense of intimacy through that choice (and from the look of some reviews, it absolutely worked for other people), but it created distance during my reading.
I was also not expecting such an dark emotional journey, and that’s totally on me. I thought this would be uplifting (not really sure why, the synopsis literally says: “But two people who seem destined to be together can still be torn apart by fear and violence”), but instead it was a tragic love story and an exploration of trauma and the Black body.
I think that if I ever decide to give this a second read, knowing what it really is, I might understand it better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Police brutality, and Death
Minor: Sexual content