Skip to main content

DECEMBER BOOK: The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

 


Monday, Dec. 21    3:30
Moderator: Dolly Parker

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.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

September 2024 Felix Ever After by Kacen Callendar

  According to Goodreads . . . Felix Love has never been in love—and, yes, he’s painfully aware of the irony. He desperately wants to know what it’s like and why it seems so easy for everyone but him to find someone. What’s worse is that, even though he is proud of his identity, Felix also secretly fears that he’s one marginalization too many—Black, queer, and transgender—to ever get his own happily-ever-after. When an anonymous student begins sending him transphobic messages—after publicly posting Felix’s deadname alongside images of him before he transitioned—Felix comes up with a plan for revenge. What he didn’t count on: his catfish scenario landing him in a quasi–love triangle.... But as he navigates his complicated feelings, Felix begins a journey of questioning and self-discovery that helps redefine his most important relationship: how he feels about himself. Felix Ever After  is an honest and layered story about identity, falling in love, and recognizing the love you d...

Wonder by R. J. Palacio

Wonder Questions http://www.shmoop.com/wonder/ What qualities does Auggie's family have that help support him as he struggles to fit in at school? Do you think Auggie ultimately sees himself as ordinary, or extraordinary? Do other people in his life think about this differently? How about his parents? How about Via? How do his friends at school think of him? How about his teachers? Why all the narrators? Why does R.J. Palacio include so many different points of view? What do we learn from different narrators that we wouldn't get from Auggie? Who is your favorite narrator, and why? What role do masks play throughout the story? How do masks help or hurt Auggie? What's the difference between kindness and just being nice, and why does it matter? What does Jack learn through his friendship and betrayal of Auggie? Which characters do you think change the most from the beginning to the end of the story, and why do you think so? How does Auggie overcome his cripp...

The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

DATE: Monday, March 2, 2:45 Rm. 351 Moderator: Susan Woodhams Robyn Schneider's  The Beginning of Everything  is a witty and heart-wrenching teen novel that will appeal to fans of books by John Green and Ned Vizzini, novels such as  The Perks of Being a Wallflower , and classics like  The Great Gatsby  and  The Catcher in the Rye . Varsity tennis captain Ezra Faulkner was supposed to be homecoming king, but that was before—before his girlfriend cheated on him, before a car accident shattered his leg, and before he fell in love with unpredictable new girl Cassidy Thorpe. As  Kirkus Reviews  said in a starred review, "Schneider takes familiar stereotypes and infuses them with plenty of depth. Here are teens who could easily trade barbs and double entendres with the characters that fill John Green's novels." Funny, smart, and including everything from flash mobs to blanket forts to a poodle who just might be the reincarnation of Jay Gats...