The Death of Vivek Oji, Worth the Read?
Akwaeki Emezi’s The Death of Vivek Oji is a beautifully crafted book that almost reads like a mystery novel. The book is about a large family that lives in Nigeria and depicts their life before, during, and after the death of Vivek. Masterfully using each chapter to detail different perspective from each of the lifelike characters as the story is told. This novel interests you with the mystery of how and why Vivek dies but traps you into reading it with the story of a person and their friends and family coming to terms with who they truly are. The book has underlying themes of acceptance littered throughout and honestly made me think about different relationships in my life.
Akwaeki Emezi does an outstanding job bringing everyday objects to life. The whole book is filled with unique descriptive language that makes you want to keep reading, for example “Chika stole a glance at Mary from the veranda as she watered the hibiscus garden, her hair tied back in a frayed knot, wearing a loose cotton dress in a faded floral print. She looked like home, like something he could fall into, whirling through her hips and thighs and breasts.” This section stands out because of how much detail Akwaeki used to describe a simple scene. This continues throughout the book and you can flip to any random page and find some piece of unique descriptions that forces your brain to paint a perfect picture.
Not only does the author make even the simplest objects come to life, but she also uses everyday objects to set the mood of certain scenes. One scene that shows off this unique style is when Vivek’s mother invites some childhood friends over to try and talk to him, “The mothers were expecting them to say more about Vivek, but it was as if somewhere within the walls of Vivek’s room, allegiances had shifted, unseen pacts had been made, and Somto and Olunne had stepped out carrying Vivek’s secrets in the elastic of their ponytails.” This section stood out to me the way the author describes hiding secrets and carrying them in the elastic of the girls’ ponytails. When the author uses these kinds of descriptive words it forces the reader to think a little and go past just the base meaning of the sentence.
While relying heavily on describing the scenery of the story the author still does an amazing job showing how relatable the main characters are. Almost all of them have moments littered throughout the novel where it made me think of a time where I could relate to that character, “Vivek chipped my tooth when I was eleven years old. Now, when I look in a mirror and open my mouth, I think of him and I feel the sadness crawling through me again.” The part that resonated with me is how whenever Osita, who is Vivek’s cousin, looks at the chipped tooth it reminds him of Vivek. This is the same with anybody that has lost someone significant in their lives, you can look at the smallest objects and memories of whoever you lost come rushing back. It was moments like these in the book that made the characters relatable and kept me interested in what was happening with them.
The most impressive and thought-provoking part of this story to me was the message that accompanied the colorful language and lifelike characters. While on the surface this novel could be taken as a simple book about a kid who dies in Nigeria and what happened to him. I challenged myself to try and think of a deeper meaning for the book that went beyond that, and I can say that I think the book was about accepting things for the way that they are before it is too late. The true intention of the novel is littered throughout but really comes to light in the very end of the book. I challenge you to read The Death of Vivek Oji by Akaeki Emezi for yourself and see if you agree.
