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Freshwater
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
An extraordinary debut novel, Freshwater explores the surreal experience of having a fractured self. It centers around a young Nigerian woman, Ada, who develops separate selves within her as a result of being born with one foot on the other side. Unsettling, heartwrenching, dark, and powerful, Freshwater is a sharp evocation of a rare way of experiencing the world, one that illuminates how we all construct our identities. Ada begins her life in the south of Nigeria as a troubled baby and a source of deep concern to her family. Her parents, Saul and Saachi, successfully prayed her into existence, but as she grows into a volatile and splintered child, it becomes clear that something went terribly awry. When Ada comes of age and moves to America for college, the group of selves within her grows in power and agency. A traumatic assault leads to a crystallization of her alternate selves: As?ghara and Saint Vincent. As Ada fades into the background of her own mind and these selvesnow protective, now hedonisticmove into control, Adas life spirals in a dark and dangerous direction. Told from the perspective of the various selves within Ada, and closely based on the authors own personal experiences, Freshwater explores the metaphysics of identity and mental health, plunging the reader into the mystery of being and self. Freshwater dazzles with ferocious energy and serpentine grace, heralding the arrival of a fierce new literary voice.
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review
Centique
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Finally getting to this debut novel from 2018. It was fascinating to view the protagonist from the internal view of the spirits that occupy her body. I had read reviews where people found this bizarre and confronting. I guess my worldview has been widened by my other reading because it didnt seem so strange - very interesting and engaging. Have you read this @Reggie ?

Billypar I loved this one, especially how convincing the different narrative voices sounded. Not overly weird but unique enough to be memorable. 1w
Centique @Billypar yes! Unique is a much better word for it i think. 1w
Reggie I have. I just remember being worried for the main character and hoping they‘d be ok in life. Cause you know, that‘s what we do for fictional characters. lol but seriously, I just remember them being in immense pain, anguish. That i wasn‘t totally sure if they had mental illness or there were actual deities. 1w
See All 12 Comments
batsy I thought it was excellent. And I have seen those reviews where people felt the need like they had to judge or adjudicate, like they had to pass off a moral judgment on something that was new and different and perhaps disturbing to them, to refuse anything that seemed alienating. Which kind of defeats the point of reading! I agree with @Reggie I felt a lot for the protagonist and just wanted them to be okay. 1w
Centique @Reggie @batsy It felt like a book you would like Reggie - real and unreal meshed in some way. I totally went with it being actual spirits/gods - or at least that that was the reality for them. And exactly that Suba - surely we read to walk in someone else‘s shoes, experience someone different from ourselves 🙌 1w
Megabooks I have this on my shelf and need to get to it. How are you? I've missed seeing you since I haven't been on as much. 1w
Centique @Megabooks i havent been on top of my friends feeds here lately either - so i just went to read your last few reviews. It sounds like you have had a tough time with your parents and your illness 💕 I hope you have a season now of feeling well and less stressed 💕 I have been fine - but some people around me have been struggling and i am supporting them. They have just started getting professional help now so im hoping for improvement. My dad is ⬇️ 1w
Centique @Megabooks stable - hes asleep much of the day but when he wakes up he can sometimes make a joke and he usually remembers his family. So that makes us all happy. The carers at his home are lovely people - i can well imagine what a difference your helper makes! Is this week a bit better Meg with health and with your folks? 💕 1w
Megabooks @Centique thanks for checking in. It is hard to watch our Dads age! My dad sleeps a lot, too, and has good days and bad days confusion-wise. The cancer treatments definitely make thinking harder! Next week I‘m going overnight to a doctor in Indianapolis. I am worried about leaving my parents! They depend on me so much! My health is improving over earlier this month but still a bit fragile. I am much more tired than usual ⬇️ 1w
Megabooks And still have some brain fog. I am sorry you have friends that are struggling but how lucky they have your support! Take care dear friend!! 1w
Suet624 I still hold such love for this book - I read it when it first came out and I just wanted to talk to people about it. 1w
CarolynM Lovely review. I will send you an email soon😘 1w
61 likes12 comments
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Bookboss
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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I spent last weekend in NYC! I had a fabulous time visiting The Strand and Book Culture, where I picked up these lovely books! I also visited the NYPL on 5th Ave., and attended the Virginia Woolf exhibit and the Treasures exhibit! Lovely literary trip!

Ruthiella Nice stack! 👍 1y
vivastory I heard about the Woolf exhibit. Sounds incredible!! 1y
Bookboss @vivastory It was fabulous! 1y
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DivineDiana How fantastic! I want to see the Woolf exhibit too! 1y
batsy What a fabulous stack! And the Woolf exhibit—how I wish I could see it 🤩 1y
TheLudicReader Jealous. I love The Strand and NYC in general. 1y
Bookboss @TheLudicReader The Strand is amazing, but I really loved Book Culture! 1y
TheLudicReader @Bookboss …not sure when I will ever get to NYC again, but I will add Book Culture to my list of places to visit. 1y
55 likes8 comments
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JacintaMCarter
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

#2022Book77
This book was beautifully written and I can‘t wait to read more by this author. The characters are flawed in ways that make you want to shake them, but also hug them and encourage them to keep fighting. And even though what the main character wanted was usually at odds with the motivations of the ogbanje living inside her, I still wanted all of them to succeed.

batsy Great review! This book was so powerful and left a strong impression. 2y
37 likes1 stack add1 comment
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johncadams
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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I was delighted to encounter the work of Akwaeke Emezi, an Igbo/Tamil writer, for the first time when my dad sent a book token for Christmas during lockdown. I spent hours searching for nonbinary writers to spend the token so that I would have actual physical gifts to open.

#literature

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

I have to admit this was a struggle for me. This is the third time I have picked the book up. This time I definitely understood it more (and finished it). The writing is complex and lyrical the story deep and surreal. Once I grasped the basis of the story it was an easier read, so unique, creative, and complexly written. I can see why people love it. Vivik Oji is still my favorite Emezi book.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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World Of Books #bookhaul
A few older books that have been on my TBR for years. Hoping to get to them soon!

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KelsiTaylor
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

This will easily be one of my favorite books of the year. This book is so beautifully written and wonderfully melancholy.
Ada was born with “one foot on the other side”, hosting gods and goddess inside her body from the day of her birth. After a traumatic event makes the other selves more prone to keeping control of Ada‘s body to help protect her, Ada feels herself fading into the background and losing control of her own mind.
11/10

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wellreadredhead
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

This novel was STUNNING. This book made me feel seen as someone with OCD, autism, depression, and gender identity issues. I feel compassion and sisterhood with Ada. Reading this felt like a transformative experience and a spiritual one as well. Easily five stars.

#lmpbc #GroupS @magyklyXdelish @Hazel2019 @shadowspeak17

Megabooks This is on my TBR, but her memoir is fantastic. The more I reflect on it, the more impressed I am. It definitely brought up a lot of feelings in me. 2y
63 likes1 comment
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julesG
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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It's autumn, or fall (whichever suits you best). I was doing pretty well with my #SceptreSummer #TBR, so I made an #AutumnTBR.

Here are the physical books I plan to read. The complete TBR list, including @DuckOfDoom and @Maike's, is on the blog: https://scepticalreading.com/2021/09/sceptre-autumn-reading-program/

#TeaAndBooks #BooksAndTea

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wellreadredhead
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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I am dealing with some serious health issues very suddenly, so I am a bit behind in my consumption of the #lmpbc picks. I promise I‘m getting a move on @Hazel2019 @magyklyXdelish @shadowspeak17 #groupS

AmyG I hope you are well soon. 3y
julesG Feel better soon! 3y
slategreyskies Hope you feel better soon!! 💕 3y
JessClark78 Hope you feel better soon. 3y
shadowspeak17 Oh, don‘t worry too much about the book. I hope you get to feeling better soon! 3y
49 likes5 comments
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Karmapen
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
Mehso-so

I wish there was an in-between rating, to match this story of a woman who is trapped between the world of flesh and gods. It was my second time reading about obganje, after Blood Honey Pig Bread, which was helpful context. The story was horrifying, the prose was stunning. I‘m not really sure what to walk away with.

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magyklyXdelish
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

I really loved the writing in this book. The way Akwaeke told their story was so beautiful. I really have never read anything like it. Not in content or prose.

This was a great #LMPBC pick ♥️

33 likes2 comments
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magyklyXdelish
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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My goal is to finish this one today. Mr. Frank is my reading buddy this afternoon ♥️

aperfectmjk Hey you stole my cat! 3y
Hazel2019 Such a cutie ☺️ 3y
sharread So cute. 3y
30 likes3 comments
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magyklyXdelish
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Starting August with an #LMPBC ♥️

This one has been on my TBR for a while so I‘m excited it was one of the picks 🤗

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jessjess
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

This was a fascinating if sometimes horrifying story. It reads both quickly but also slowly because every other paragraph you have to take in and digest it. All the trigger warnings but it is an amazing take on identity and what it means to be a person, in both beauty and horror.

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shadowspeak17
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book isn‘t very long, but it packs quite a punch. I really enjoyed the unique way it was told and the different ways you could think about what was happening. It‘s definitely a book I‘ll be thinking about for a while.

@magyklyXdelish I‘m planning to get this mailed by Monday. I‘ll let you know when it‘s on the way. 😊

#lmpbc #groups #catsoflitsy #Phoenix

Leftcoastzen 😻So cute! 3y
shadowspeak17 @magyklyXdelish It‘s on the way! I just emailed you the tracking number. :) 3y
48 likes1 stack add3 comments
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StellaDz
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Mehso-so

I will say that the premise of this novel is brilliant: telling the story of a ‘troubled‘ girl through the perspective of the spirits within her. I say troubled in quotation marks because you can really interpret it any way: mental health, sexual orientation, gender/non-binary. It is dark, troubling and violent. And while I can praise the method and presentation, at one point, it went flat and became one-note. I became numb to it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

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johncadams
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Reggie Off topic, but not really, was all the track and field athletes who said it was God‘s plan for them to make the Olympic team. And then there was the one girl who made it but she graduated from Harvard and is now working on her grad studies in epidemiology and she said- I just had to believe in myself. 3y
johncadams @Reggie Self belief comes from so many different sources, but however it develops it is always welcome! 3y
37 likes1 stack add2 comments
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dainarmb
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Mehso-so

I can see why so many people say they DNF this book as they had no idea what was going on. Emezi is a talented writer but the style of this book is difficult to enjoy, imo. Especially when her story doesn't come together until you're already 2/3 done with the book! I will say, I thought it was a creative use of Nigerian lore as a lens to examine the painful struggle Ada, a nonbinary adolescent, was forced to endure.

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dainarmb
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Ughhh this book is not helping my anxieties 😭 #currentlyreading

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dainarmb
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Now that we're halfway through 2021, I thought 'd share an update on my Stronger Spine 2021 Reading Challenge! Currently working on #3.

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johncadams
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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johncadams
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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33 likes1 stack add
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RegineReads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
This post contains spoilers
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Pickpick

Spoilers = Trigger warnings! The first five chapters are like diving face first into culture mixed with uncommon experience, and so it might be hard to get into. But once you let go of trying to fit this story into your world view, and accept the story as its own unique experience, it picks up. It sucks you in. Beautiful prose that swirls up from the page like art. Trigger warnings apply: Sexual Assault, self harm, disordered eating, suicide.

TheKidUpstairs Great review! I'm so intrigued... 3y
RegineReads @TheKidUpstairs oh, yay! It's my first time reviewing, so it caught your eye :). If you give it a read, I would love to hear what you think! 3y
RegineReads @TheKidUpstairs *so I'm glad it caught your eye 3y
4 likes3 comments
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vlwelser
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

This book made my head explode. But like in the best possible way. It's about feeling other. About not feeling like you have control over your own self. And about protecting yourself from life when you just can't deal. At least that's what I experienced. And the author reads her own #audiobook. 💜💜💜💜💜

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vlwelser
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Back to #audiowalking and I'm officially obsessed with this author who needs to write more books.

Hooked_on_books And I‘m obsessed with those gorgeous purple blossoms! 😍 3y
44 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Addison_Reads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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#OppositeDay @AlwaysBeenaLoverofBooks @TheKidUpstairs

When I read this, I expected it to be the #same as other books written in this genre, but I was wrong. Everything about this book is wonderfully different and in a class all its own.

TheKidUpstairs Stacked! 3y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awesome collage 💛💛 3y
40 likes1 stack add2 comments
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RegineReads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Reading challenging (as of now, the writing is sweeping metaphors and similes in the context of an unfamiliar place and unfamiliat cultures - beautiful but definitely challenging) texts is always a bit of a messy affair for me...🤓

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RegineReads
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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My first #smartbrowngirl book club read! 💁🏾‍♀️

Nute Welcome to Litsy! It‘s a warm and friendly community. I know that you will enjoy yourself here. I‘m looking forward to getting to know you!🙂 3y
RegineReads @Nute Thank you for such a warm welcome 💕 3y
6 likes1 stack add2 comments
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MySharonaK
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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The wonderful @readordierachel has not only made my day, but my month ❤️ so excited and looking forward to starting this. Thank you Rachel 😘🙏

readordierachel Yay! I'm so glad it made it to you. Enjoy ❤ 3y
82 likes2 comments
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readordierachel
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Wow. This was unique, hypnotic, harrowing, moving. I wouldn't know where to begin describing it, so I'll just leave it at adjectives. I know this will be echoing in my mind for a while. Just truly stunning.

CW: sexual assault, self-harm, suicide

MySharonaK After reading how you feel about it, I just put on hold on my library‘s app. Thank you ❤️ 3y
readordierachel @MySharonaK I hope you like it ❤ 3y
Erinreadsthebooks One of my favorites 🙌 3y
See All 17 Comments
MySharonaK @readordierachel thank you! 🌷 Sadly gonna have to wait until the end of May 😂 3y
readordierachel @MySharonaK That's so long! I suppose that means it's in demand 😊 I'd be happy to send you this copy if you'd like to read it sooner? 3y
MySharonaK @readordierachel wow you‘re so kind !!! 😍 3y
Reggie This book was so hard to read. You just wanted Ada to be ok. Great review, Rachel. 3y
batsy It's a brilliant book 💜 3y
youneverarrived Agree. I still think about this 🖤 3y
readordierachel @MySharonaK If you email me your address, I will pop it in the mail :) It's readordierachel at gmail. 3y
readordierachel @Reggie @batsy @youneverarrived Knowing it's somewhat autobiographical makes it that much more emotional 💔 I read they have a memoir coming out in the near future 3y
MySharonaK @readordierachel emailed you 💚 3y
Addison_Reads I loved this book. I'm so glad you did too. 3y
sarahbarnes This sounds amazing!! 3y
readordierachel @sarahbarnes it is! Highly recommend! 3y
83 likes2 stack adds17 comments
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Lisebo
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Bailedbailed

It was a tough and confusing book, I found it hard to connect with all the “spirits” narrated by author. However, that‘s not the reason I bailed

I bailed because life happened, time froze....and death happened and my world was turned upside down🖤

Ps: I honestly don‘t even know where the book is

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HeathHof
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Got this on kindle for $1.99 today! Happy that I didn't have to use my whole #pennyperpage budget but now I'm down to $7.87 Thankfully I'm off tomorrow and can hopefully add more to that.

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broughtyoubooks
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Last read of 2020. TW for sexual violence. I decided to check this out because it kept coming up in lists of queer books by POC, and it was a short audiobook. Well worth reading, and Akwaeke's narration is beautiful, and the imagery, especially of mental health, is incredible.

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swynn
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

This book, y'all.

It's the story of a Nigerian girl occupied by multiple spirits, told mostly from the perspective of the spirits. A Western diagnosis would probably call it dissociative identity disorder, but the Igbo mythology is never questioned, and is sort of the point. And can Emezi write! It's fresh and gripping and at this moment my favorite read of 2020.

(TW for relationship violence, self harm)

#24B4Monday
@andrew65 @jb72 @SumisBooks

Andrew65 Great 👏👏👏 3y
29 likes1 comment
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swynn
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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The first time our mother came for us, we screamed.

#firstlinefridays
@ShyBookOwl

Ruthiella That‘s a pretty great opening line! 3y
25 likes1 comment
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crazyspine
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Difficult to describe this book. Beautiful magical realistic coming of age tale is the best thing I could think of right now, but the book defies genres. Added bonus the author is the narrator of the audiobook.

49 likes1 stack add
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underground_bks
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Freshwater is like no book I‘ve ever read. From a Western lens, Ada appears to suffer from multiple personality disorder, but Freshwater narrates her experience through traditional Igbo spirituality and the concept of the Ogbanjé, an evil spirit. Psychologically, sexually, and spiritually, Ada transcends definition, and this book is a wonderful reminder of all we don‘t know.

(On #petsandpagesmonday, I highlight an adoptable cat—this is Bagels!)

StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Bagles is beautiful 🤩 3y
Leftcoastzen 😻sweet kitty! 3y
Reggie Really great review! I liked this book a lot. It was painful though. 3y
See All 10 Comments
Nebklvr Pretty kitty 3y
underground_bks @Reggie it was an intense read for sure and skewed my reality a bit 3y
underground_bks @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego this was just my third time going to the shelter but so far we have a 100% adoption rate of featured cats! 3y
underground_bks @Leftcoastzen one of the biggest perks of my job! 3y
underground_bks @Nebklvr she sure is! 3y
batsy One of those books that just go straight into you and opens you up. Really good and utterly memorable. Nice review! 3y
underground_bks @batsy yes exactly! Thank you so much—this one was hard to review and I wanted so much to do it justice! 3y
33 likes2 stack adds10 comments
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BarbaraJean
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Freshwater is such a difficult book to describe. As an exploration of a fractured self, it‘s fascinating and heartbreaking and disorienting. The main character barely has a voice, as she is pushed to the side by her inhabiting spirits, or ogbanje. Emezi describes these various selves using Nigerian mythology, and it‘s left up to the reader to decide whether it‘s magical realism or mental illness, or the latter described in mythological terms.⤵️

BarbaraJean The book is a unique exploration of trauma and the divided self--difficult to read, difficult to describe, but definitely worthwhile.

This article was a helpful companion to the book, as it describes the author's own experiences being caught between expectations and (gender) identities, using the terms of the ogbanje. https://www.thecut.com/2018/01/writer-and-artist-akwaeke-emezi-gender-transition...
(edited) 3y
batsy Lovely review. I was deeply moved by this book. 3y
48 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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cookie21
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
Bailedbailed

Oh my goodness! I did not expect a story told by spirits taking over a girl. I was very disappointed. It wasn't interesting, it was just evil!

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BarbaraJean
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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My county library system is currently doing sidewalk service. They bring your books out in a brown paper bag stapled shut, and there‘s always a little message written on it: “Enjoy!” “Have a great day!” “Happy reading!” It‘s so sweet. Today was my biggest sidewalk service #LibraryHaul yet. The weight of it tore open the bag when I went to carry it in from the car.😬 One is a cookbook and one is for my husband, so only three really count, right?!

Texreader Awesome! That‘s how our new local bookstore is handling it. We drive up and call and they place our bag o‘ books in a paper bag on a table on the sidewalk. 4y
MommyWantsToReadHerBook The tagged book sounds really interesting! 4y
Sace I just used our library pick up for the first time yesterday. They do the same...but in a plastic bag with no happy note. I'm jealous! 4y
56 likes3 comments
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Well-ReadNeck
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

Amazing writing. A book unlike anything I‘ve read before. ⚠️ All the trigger warnings (seriously)

A woman born inhabited by spirits with new ones birthed with every trauma. Raw, fierce, heartbreaking.

cleoh I finished this recently and absolutely adored it! 4y
94 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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cleoh
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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I‘m reading inside instead of outside in my backyard today to avoid the sun and the heat, but I‘m hoping by this evening it will have cooled enough for me to be outside. I‘ve heard mixed things about this title, but it sounds intriguing so I‘m interested to see how I like it.

#awesomeaugust

73 likes1 stack add
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Bookish.SAM
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Pickpick

I was a little skeptical at first, there was so much hype. And it did take me a bit to get into this... but then I did. It left me wondering if I got it, questioning my understanding of all she was trying to say, would a more spiritual person see this differently. But love it or leave it... any book that leaves me thinking afterwards is well worth the read as far as I‘m concerned.

#booksandbooze

49 likes1 stack add
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B00SEGUMPS
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Mehso-so

CW: sexual trauma, abusive relationships, self-harm, hospitalization, physical and sexual child abuse, substance abuse.

Freshwater was a hard slice of life novel representing the intricacies of identity and thought and religion, while also intertwining with topics of inner gods and other-selves.

This book picks up and shines brighter in its last half when we are finally able to see Ada vocalize her thoughts on what's happening to her!

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TaraTLK
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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The audio is read by the author which I enjoyed. This book is fascinating. Not an easy read but the prose is amazing. Story of someone inhabited with obanje who start vying for control after a violent incident.
Content note: sexual assault, self harm, disordered eating.

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BookmarksTheSpot
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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This has been a very fascinating read so far. I love the idea of how our minds and souls and lives are created. I love thinking that there isn‘t one true answer and anything is really possible when it comes to why and how we are here.

8 likes1 stack add
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Bookish.SAM
Freshwater | Akwaeke Emezi
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Mini #libraryhaul 📚👍

My local library recently re-opened for hold pick-ups only. No browsing around but nice to be back to doing something ‘normal-ish‘. I used to wander the library a lot.

‘When in doubt, go to the library.‘ 🙂

vivastory I checked out the Shafak yesterday at my library 4y
42 likes1 comment