Speak No Evil in Words Between Worlds

May 31, 2018 Katy O. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: lgbtqia, adult-reads

ALL THE STARS and officially on my Best of 2018 list. Brief, searing and intensely readable, I must insist that every. single. one. of you read. this. book. I picked it up at lunch one day to try to at least get a start on it for the May @words.between.worlds (Instagram) discussion and finished it at 6 am the next day while walking the dogs. Because I couldn’t stop, even though I wanted the pain of the narrative to stop. If that makes sense?

(NOTE: this may be about teens but it is NOT a YA book ...more

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May 30, 2018 Ashley rated it really liked it

Did I really finish Speak No Evil the same day that I started it? Yes, yes I did.
This book is not one to be taken, or read, lightly. This book will snatch up your attention and drag you right in. And it will hold it. I'll admit the beginning was slow and a little off-putting for me but quickly began speaking to my heart. I ended with tears in my eyes and anguish in my heart. 4 stars. ...more

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May 30, 2018 Renée | Book Girl Magic rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. **Contains Spoilers** Not even sure how to put this book into words. The ending was unexpected to say the least.
 I enjoyed this read. It was my first LGBT book and it was intriguing from beginning to end. My heart felt for the main character Niru and his struggle to come out to the world as a gay young man. I feel like so many kids aren't able to freely be themselves because of the pressure and demands put on us by family, friends and society.
 Although it's not as openly discussed, many kids are **Contains Spoilers** Not even sure how to put this book into words. The ending was unexpected to say the least.
 I enjoyed this read. It was my first LGBT book and it was intriguing from beginning to end. My heart felt for the main character Niru and his struggle to come out to the world as a gay young man. I feel like so many kids aren't able to freely be themselves because of the pressure and demands put on us by family, friends and society.
 Although it's not as openly discussed, many kids are sent away to be "fixed" but people of religious authority. It's truly saddening that kids can't be loved and accepted for who they are. It was interesting to see Niru battle with this as his Nigerian parents (mainly his father) was not having it any other way. Niru's father was ashamed of him for being gay and while his mother wouldn't openly say it, you could see that she empathized with her son.
 I was happy that Niru had a tiny encounter with Damien so that he could live a little and enjoy being himself, even if only for a short period of time. Damien brought out a spark in Niru that had been missing for some time now. It was like Damien was comfort food. A familiar happy place that had been buried deep. Home.
 And Meredith. Really disliked her in this book and found her to be extremely selfish. She was always more concerned with her need to be loved and wanted by Niru rather than helping her best friend through his mixed emotions and struggle of being a gay young man. When he was murdered (hello surprise ending), I blamed her completely for it and was actually satisfied in knowing that she would have to live with that guilt for the rest of her life. A case of another young man who's bound to be successful in life was taken away in the blink of an eye, like dust blowing in the wind. My heart aches for the pain felt by his family (especially his dad who never had the opportunity to build a proper relationship with Niru) and the fact that Niru never got to live life as an out of the closet, gay young man.
 I gave this book ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. Definitely a book that kept me on my toes. Starting to really enjoy books that are told from multiple characters perspectives. ...more

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Aug 02, 2018 Charlotte rated it it was amazing

Shelves: queer-read, favorites, black-authors-read, read-in-2018

I've listened to Speak No Evil on audio and while my mind sometimes wanders while doing so, I was totally captivated by this heartbreaking story. Speak No Evil might be on the shorter side but this novel covers the alientaing experience of being a foreigner in a country although seemingly having every status symbol that others do, the teen angst of unreciprocated love and finding your own sexual identity, the consequences of cultural family hierarchy and the dangers of ingrained racism in societ ...more

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May 21, 2018 Never Without a Book rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala was one of my highly anticipated release for this year. I also added and removed this book off my list like 10 times (no explanation), but after winning it in a giveaway & a little motivation from fellow book friends...well here we are.

There is so much emotion and so many important themes packed into this book that it's impossible to properly cover everything Iweala touches upon.

Niru is the privileged son of Nigerian immigrants living in Washington DC. As Americ Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala was one of my highly anticipated release for this year. I also added and removed this book off my list like 10 times (no explanation), but after winning it in a giveaway & a little motivation from fellow book friends...well here we are.

There is so much emotion and so many important themes packed into this book that it's impossible to properly cover everything Iweala touches upon.

Niru is the privileged son of Nigerian immigrants living in Washington DC. As American as he is Niru father still calls Nigeria "home" and like many immigrant parents, he worries that his son is becoming "too American". (Caribbean parents are this way too, well at least mine) The American influence is a conflict that runs through most immigrant families and yet it's always individual. It's treated both seriously and with humor. It's easy to imagine any of the words coming from many people living in similar situations.

Throughout the book we see that Niru wants to stay rooted in his family and community, but he is who he is. Steeped in Christianity, headed to Harvard, Niru is torn between love for his family, long-held beliefs, comfort with the way things are and his sexuality. They don't seem to fit together. This is made clear when his father drags him to Nigeria where Reverend Olumide has found people who can "deliver" him and "clear this abomination" from Niru.(Andrew Caldwell tried that….)

Now, towards the last half of the book Meredith(Niru friend/ex-friend) takes over. Everything that transpired once she took over the narration was intended to manipulate the reader into finding something redeemable about her(not for me). I blame her for some of what happened to Niru, but then I had to remember Niru could have made different choices. I loved Iweala unique style of writing and the choice of the end being left to our imagination. This book reflects the harrowing expectations when race colors how people behave. Meredith's reactions seem passive, un-serious, in understanding her responsibility in being a good citizen in society, and how she fails Niru and his family.
...more

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May 17, 2018 Simone rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-recommend, poc-authors, literary-fiction, 2018

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. ***SPOILER WARNING***

There is so much jammed into this book. It’s seriously only 200 pages long but it unpacks a fury of themes that are so relevant to today.

I really loved this novel. I loved the story about the young Nigerian American who has his whole life ahead of him and how sadly all that was taken away from him. The story also made me frustratingly mad.

One of the many reasons why I’m mad is that Niru just realized he was gay. He didn’t like Meredith, his long time friend, in the same way ...more

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Jun 18, 2018 Candace Hernandez rated it liked it

I’ve seen this little gem all over #bookstagram recently, and was excited to get my hands on it. There was A LOT of story packed into these 207 pages. It is certainly an important and timely story that I’m glad I read.
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I know this isn’t a popular opinion, but I didn’t love it. I had a difficult time with the run-on sentences and lack of quotation marks. I found that I had to re-read much of the dialogue to understand who was saying what. Beyond that, the second half felt like a completely diff ...more

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May 16, 2018 Miriam rated it really liked it

Speechless. While short in page length, the depth reached in this book is astounding. The author explores race, sexuality, religion, and more through the eyes of youth. This book’s impact is powerful.

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Apr 25, 2018 Rachel Rooney rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, 2018, diverse-author

Harvard-bound, Niru is the son of Nigerian immigrants with high expectations and strict religious values. When they discover that he had plans to meet up with another boy even though he didn't go through with it, it causes a lot of problems for him at home. This tension between Niru and his parents forms the crux of the novel, but there is also his friendship with Meredith, who downloaded the app that led to the meet-up that didn't happen.

This was another 3-1/2 star book for me. There was someth ...more

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Apr 16, 2018 Stephenie rated it liked it

This novel packs a lot into its 207 pages.
Niru has a secret that only his best friend Meredith knows—he’s gay. When his Nigerian parents find an incriminating text on Niru’s phone, the consequences are harsh and heartbreaking.

I knew this story’s subject matters would be distressing, but the fallout, especially the climax, was not what I expected at all. The struggles of Family and Friends vs. Personal Identity left me hating some characters and hurting for others.

I liked this book but didn’t lo ...more

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Apr 27, 2019 prima_dawna rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2019, hard-copy-2019

It was emotionally deep and charged. The cultural differences were very significant in this story. My heart went out to Niru. Identity. Nature. Nurture. All very poignant aspects of this novel. Loved it.

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