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What does it mean for a family to lose a child they never really knew?
One afternoon, in a town in southeastern Nigeria, a mother opens her front door to discover her son's body, wrapped in colorful fabric, at her feet. What follows is the tumultuous, heart-wrenching story of one family's struggle to understand a child whose spirit is both gentle and mysterious. 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.
"The author of the young adult novel Pet, a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award, offers another exploration of gender identity, this time for adults...Vividly written and deeply affecting." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"The plaudits for Emezi's first novel, Freshwater (NYPL Young Lions, Lambda Literary, and Center for Fiction's First Novel honors), did not overstate the case. Following Pet, a finalist for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature, this achingly beautiful probe into the challenges of living fully as a nonbinary human being, is an illuminating read." - Library Journal (starred review)
"While Emezi leans on clichés ("hit me in the chest like a lorry") and two-dimensional supporting characters, they offer sharp observations about the cost of transphobia and homophobia, and about the limits of honesty in their characters' lives. Despite a few bumps, this is a worthy effort." - Publishers Weekly
"Electrifying." - O: The Oprah Magazine
"A testament to Emezi's immense literary prowess." - Elle
"Although Akwaeke Emezi introduces us to Vivek Oji in death...it is his life that will resonate with readers, long after they've turned this book's final page." - Refinery29
This information about The Death of Vivek Oji was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: © Beowulf Sheehan
Akwaeke Emezi (they/them) is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Death of Vivek Oji, which was longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize; Pet, a finalist for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature; and Freshwater, which was named a New York Times Notable Book and shortlisted for the PEN/Hemingway Award, the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award, the Lambda Literary Award, and the Center for Fiction's First Novel Prize. Selected as a 5 Under 35 honoree by the National Book Foundation, they are based in liminal spaces.
Link to Akwaeke Emezi's Website
Name Pronunciation
Akwaeke Emezi: a-quake-ay em-ezi
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