
Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi is a unique and compelling novel that delves into the experiences of Ada, a young woman with multiple personalities shaped by trauma and traditional Igbo spirituality. The book explores themes of internal conflict, mental illness, and self-discovery through the lens of Ada's relationships with the spirits inhabiting her body. The narrative is described as raw, visceral, and deeply disturbing, with a focus on Ada's struggles to navigate her identity and existence between two worlds.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings for Freshwater include sexual assault, self-harm, mental illness, and trauma, making it a potentially triggering read for some.
Has Romance?
While romance is present in the narrative, it is intermingled with themes of trauma and personal struggles, making it a secondary focus.
From The Publisher:
'Completely blew me away.' Daisy Johnson, author of Everything Under
'One of the most dazzling debuts I've ever read.' Taiye Selasi, author of Ghana Must Go
'I'm urging everyone to read it.' Sophie Mackintosh, author of The Water Cure
Ada has always been unusual. Her parents prayed her into existence, but something must have gone awry. Their troubled child begins to develop separate selves and is prone to fits of anger and grief.When Ada grows up and heads to college in America, a traumatic event crystallises the selves into something more powerful. As Ada fades into the background of her own mind, these 'alters' - now protective, now hedonistic - take control, shifting her life in a dangerous direction.
Ratings (15)
Incredible (5) | |
Loved It (4) | |
Liked It (3) | |
It Was OK (2) | |
Did Not Like (1) |
Reader Stats (49):
Read It (16) | |
Want To Read (26) | |
Not Interested (7) |
4 comment(s)
“Freshwater” is a novel of mysticism, sadness, madness, and acceptance. The story is told through three perspectives: a group of spirit gods called We, Asughara, one of three gods inhabiting Ada’s body, and lastly Ada.
We begin the book by giving the reader context of life before Ada and life when Ada is born. Ada’s birth is an anomaly in that instead of her personality being fully formed, part of her is present while part of her is one the other side.
As Ada grows older, various traumas occur in her life which lead to the presence of god spirits inhabiting her body as a means to protect her. Although the spirits do protect her, they also cause her harm and put her in risky situations. Eventually, Ada makes peace with the gods within and accepts herself as not quite human but not quite a god.
Women and madness, igbo mythology, nigeria, told from different povs
****3.5****
Freshwater is a book which was slightly different for me. I liked it.
Ada, our main character was born to Nigerian Father and Indian Mother as a second child. She with her brings brothersisters inside her. Brothersisters are based on Nigerian Mythology reffered as
"Ogbanje".
I was the wildness under the skin, the skin into a weapon, the weapon over the flesh. I was here. No one would ever touch her again.
The first part of the book is narrated by a "we", that is brothersisters who creates chaos in a child's mind. Then when Ada grows up and moves to the US. There some traumatic events leads these brothersisters inside her to more fragmentation of self and creates Asụghara and Saint Vincent. Asụghara in Ada, makes her go reckless, do self harm, run wild. Saint Vincent is the man part in Ada, who is passive while Asụghara is boiling in Ada. But when Asụghara is failing/doubtful Saint Vincent takes charge and makes Ada to try be a man.
The story of Ada's family is also there in a background, slowly ticking in between. The family issues , the child abuse which were told in a unconventional way. The story is recontextualized at several places and throw light on a situation in a different angle. A very good book. I still feel disturbed by this one and this might stay a bit in a corner of my mind.
Everything gets clearer with each day, as long as I listen. With each morning, I am less afraid.
Happy Reading!!
ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks for making this available!
I found this book to be challenging in all the best ways. The word choice is so good, it really makes you feel like you're reading something that's not of this world, so at times it feels almost disturbing - in the way that reality is disturbing.
That the book confronts the ideas of what it means to be religious, to be faithful, to be mentally ill, or a fractured spirit - and then never really answers it in a way that makes any one way wrong, is so skillful that it took me an hour to even process my feelings.
Definitely would read again in the future.
About the Author:
Akwaeke Emezi is an Igbo and Tamil writer and video artist based in liminal spaces. They are a recipient of the National Book Foundation's '5 Under 35' award for 2018, selected by Carmen Maria Machado. Born in Umuahia and raised in Aba, Nigeria, Emezi holds two degrees, including an MPA from New York University. In 2017, Emezi was awarded a Global Arts Fund grant and a Sozopol Fellowship for Creative Nonfiction. They won the 2017 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Africa, and their writing has been published by Dazed Magazine, The Cut, Buzzfeed, Granta Online, Vogue.com, and Commonwealth Writers, among others. Freshwater, which was longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in fiction by the American Library Association, is their debut novel.
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