Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson: Book Review
The debut novel from British-Ghanaian writer, Caleb Azumah Nelson, Open Water is the story that every contemporary book lover is raving about. Framed by a glorious celebration of Black art and culture, this gem of a book deserves pride of place on your bookshelf. The story follows two young Black Londoners, a photographer and a dancer, who are trying to both navigate the world and survive through it. Tentatively, tenderly, they fall in love. But fear and violence are determined to tear them apart. Written from a second person perspective, this is a stunning debut that looks at what it means to be defined as little more than a Black body in the twenty-first century. It's so beautifully powerful and compelling, you could take any one part of it and easily turn it into poetry. "You have always thought if you opened your mouth in open water you would drown, but if you didn't open your mouth you would suffocate. So here you are, drowning." Open Water is the sort of novel
