A review by kaileehaong
The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

5.0

Another knockout by Emezi. I knew I was becoming a superfan of theirs as soon as I read Freshwater two years ago. Vivek is yet another stunning masterpiece that takes on many themes (identity, sexuality, naming, the cultural and generational rift between child and parent, and so many more) in such an elegant and devastating way. The novel is told in many different vantage points—a close third narration from his parents’ point of view and from his cousin’s point of view, a first person of his cousin and himself, and even a short little intermission-like chapter with characters that are seemingly irrelevant. Emezi weaves a beautiful and heartbreaking masterpiece following the life of a child that held such a large part of everyone’s lives that he entered. An NPR review I read says it best: “this novel about a death is full of life.”