Review by Booklist Review
Award-winning Azumah Nelson's eagerly awaited sophomore novel, following Open Water (2021), is a provocative coming-of-age story told in his signature lyrical prose. Stephen's life revolves around music. As the son of Ghanaian immigrants in London, it's the rhythmic gospel music at church that ignites his soul and connects him to his parents. Music also defines his relationship with his best friend, Del, and it's music that holds Stephen's small world together. As Stephen faces choices about college and leaving home, the music is stripped away, and his world begins to fall apart. Away from the community of people who look like him and share his experiences, Stephen is forced to take a closer look at what defines him and discovers, painfully, that it clashes with his parent's expectations. Azumah Nelson captures the innocence of youth set against the pressure of a gentrifying neighborhood, complex family relationships, and the bridging of two worlds and cultures, Great Britain and Ghana. The result is a beautifully rich novel celebrating love and art and conducting an in-depth exploration of the joys and pains of Black youth.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Nelson revisits the Southeast London setting of Open Water in this astonishing account of a young British Ghanaian man's dueling desires to please his parents and pursue his passion for music. The reader first meets narrator Stephen in church in summer 2010, where at 18 he's humbled and quieted by the call to prayer, describing it as the chance to "speak to someone who is both us and the people we want to be." When the music starts, though, Stephen doesn't need to be anywhere else or become anyone else. With a bass line "getting to the heart of things" and a "pianist play secret chords from the soul," he dances with his older brother, Raymond, their bond wordless and powerful. That night, Stephen and Raymond pursue their true calling, putting on a dance party with their friends and spinning old grime records. A year later, after Stephen has completed his first year of college, dancing provides relief from the pressure put on him by his father to prepare for a stable future, which comes to a head after Stephen announces he's dropping out. Nelson plays their confrontation beautifully, mixing Stephen's defiance with a yearning for acceptance, so when his father kicks him out of the house, the effect is even more devastating. Nelson's assured writing captures the pulse of a dance party, the heat of a family's bond, and the depth of spiritual fervor to conjure a story as infectious as a new favorite song. (July)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Nelson's follow-up to his Costa Award--winning and National Book Foundation "5 Under 35" debut novel Open Water is a loving portrait of a British Ghanaian community in London, told through the eyes of Stephen, a young aspiring jazz musician. During the last few weeks of high school and the following summer, his relationship with his longtime friend and bandmate Del blossoms into romance, but their attendance at different colleges forces a rift. Disillusioned, Stephen drops out and returns home, exacerbating a conflict with his father, who shows disdain at Stephen's apparent lack of direction and dreams of a music career. Only a family tragedy leads them slowly toward reconciliation. Throughout the novel, its title refers variously to the Ghanaian immigrant community centered on cultural touchstones, including food, music, and faith; families biological or chosen; and romantic relationships between two people. VERDICT The musicality of Nelson's language underscores this vibrant and deeply moving tale of love, family, and coming of age. While stories of conflict between first- and second-generation immigrants are common, the cultural richness and specificity of Nelson's narrative rises above tropes and stereotypes.--Christine DeZelar-Tiedman
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
