A review by abbie_
The Unfortunates by J.K. Chukwu

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.0

Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for my free digital ARC in exchange for a review!

Boy oh boy was this book an emotional rollercoaster! I need to preface this by saying that I highly recommend it but if you are currently struggling with depression and/or self-harm, please take care of yourself if you read it!
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The Unfortunates is told in the style of a thesis written by Sahara, a queer, half-Black half-Nigerian sophomore who is in the grips of debilitating depression. As well as her depression, Life Partner or LP as she refers to it, Sahara is also grappling with all of the exhaustion that comes from being a young Black woman in an Ivy League college entrenched in institutionalised racism. Other Black students are ‘graduating early’ at an alarming rate, driven to suicide, dropping out, or failed by the medical professionals supposedly charged with their care. Courtney @busyblackbookworm put it perfectly in her review - the racism Chukwu exhibits in her book is not explicit, but rather the focus is on the everyday micro-aggressions and ignorance prevalent at mostly-white institutions. Slowly but surely, this form pervasive racism wears down the Black students (and other students of colour, as briefly explored with Sahara’s best friend, but the chief focus is on Black students), forcing them to drastic, devastating measures.
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Chukwu does an incredible job of showing the oppressive reality of being a Black depressed woman in a mostly white sphere. At one point Sahara despairs over how to explain to her parents ‘why [she is] incapable of simply learning for four years’.  When in reality there’s nothing simple at all when your depression is making existing seem like an impossible task, coupled with fighting back against an institution that is doing its very best to erase Black students.
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There is some also humour through the despair, as well as intriguing zine illustrations which I mostly felt too dense to ‘get’. Overall a candid & challenging read and I look forward to what’s next from debut author J.K. Chukwu!
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