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Raised by a distant father and an understanding but overprotective mother, Vivek suffers disorienting blackouts, moments of disconnection between self and surroundings. As adolescence gives way to adulthood, Vivek finds solace in friendships with the warm, boisterous daughters of the Nigerwives, foreign-born women married to Nigerian men. But Vivek’s closest bond is with Osita, the worldly, high-spirited cousin whose teasing confidence masks a guarded private life. As their relationship deepens—and Osita struggles to understand Vivek’s escalating crisis—the mystery gives way to a heart-stopping act of violence in a moment of exhilarating freedom. Propulsively readable, teeming with unforgettable characters, The Death of Vivek Oji is a novel of family and friendship that challenges expectations—a dramatic story of loss and transcendence that will move every reader.
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* so: if nobody sees you, are you still there? (16%)
* i kept the book for the title, for how it was spelled. beautyful. i had no idea why that spelling was chosen, but i liked it because it kept the beauty intact. it wasn’t swallowed, killed off with an i to make a whole new word. it was solid; it was still there, so much of it that it couldn’t fit into a new word, so much fullness. you got a better sense of exactly what was causing that fullness. beauty. beauty. i wanted to be as whole as that word. (21%)
* some people can’t see softness without wanting to hurt it (47%)
0Beautifully written, but I found myself feeling distant from the characters who I think I was supposed to care about? (that's why the 4 stars)
Even still, I liked peeking into the world of the global diaspora in Nigeria (IS THAT THE RIGHT TERM OR DID I MAKE THAT UP? Still learning...), and was moved--both pained and warmed--by the family and friend's reactions and adaptations to Vivek being misgendered from birth. The realistic family relations (i.e. forced to hang out with cousin and grow up together) mixed with slight magic realism felt both familiar and unfamiliar, which was kept my attention as a reader!
The suspense of the events leading up to the Vivek's death (not a spoiler, see title) was tightly done! Knowing that he was going to die let me treasure the moments he was alive a little more...
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