A review by carysbeesbooks
Small Worlds by Caleb Azumah Nelson

4.0

I knew I was going to love this because Open Water was one of my favourite books of 2022 (and remains one of my favourite books, seriously, I recommend it to everyone) and, while I didn't rate it quite as highl;y as Open Water, I did thoroughly enjoy Small Worlds! Caleb Azumah Nelson has such a great way of capturing the human condition. For such a short book, each character had such depth. None of the characters felt necessarily good or bad, morally speaking, they all lived in that grey area that real humans live in every day. The emotion portrayed on the page was beautifully done, and I love how this author doesn't shy away from showing Black men experiencing deep emotion, something that is often stigmatized. The switch to second person was unexpected but I thought it was well placed in the book and, of course, wonderfully written. If you're looking for a short read that will tug on the heartstrings, then definitely pick this one up! I can't wait to read it again when my physical copy arrives.

I recieved a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publishers in return for an honest review. All of the opinions above are my own.