teekeita 's review for:

Aftershocks by Nadia Owusu

3.75

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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i wanted to love this but i think it needed an edit . a memoir touching on absent mothers, death of a parent, eldest daughter duties and being the biracial child of a UN diplomat living in various African countries during political conflicts. memoirs are often a collection of essays published elsewhere. this is the case in aftershocks, but it results in a lack of linearity - to its detriment - the pacing was off. the metaphor of earthquakes was overrought and also not fully enaged with as a device osuwu is a gorgeous writer; honest and reflective without being cloying.