Publishers Weekly
★ 05/01/2023
Nelson revisits the Southeast London setting of Open Water in this astonishing account of a young British Ghanaian man’s dueling desires to please his parents and pursue his passion for music. The reader first meets narrator Stephen in church in summer 2010, where at 18 he’s humbled and quieted by the call to prayer, describing it as the chance to “speak to someone who is both us and the people we want to be.” When the music starts, though, Stephen doesn’t need to be anywhere else or become anyone else. With a bass line “getting to the heart of things” and a “pianist play secret chords from the soul,” he dances with his older brother, Raymond, their bond wordless and powerful. That night, Stephen and Raymond pursue their true calling, putting on a dance party with their friends and spinning old grime records. A year later, after Stephen has completed his first year of college, dancing provides relief from the pressure put on him by his father to prepare for a stable future, which comes to a head after Stephen announces he’s dropping out. Nelson plays their confrontation beautifully, mixing Stephen’s defiance with a yearning for acceptance, so when his father kicks him out of the house, the effect is even more devastating. Nelson’s assured writing captures the pulse of a dance party, the heat of a family’s bond, and the depth of spiritual fervor to conjure a story as infectious as a new favorite song. (July)
From the Publisher
Praise for Small Worlds:
Winner of the Dylan Thomas Prize
Shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction
Longlisted for the Jhalak Prize
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2023
A Best Book of Summer from the New York Times, Elle, Boston Globe, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Time, New Statesman (UK), Times(UK), Marie Claire (UK), and Literary Hub
A Most Anticipated Book of the Year for i-D Magazine, Esquire (UK), Guardian, Huffington Post (UK), BellaNaija, Literary Hub, and The Millions “Masterful.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune“Small Worlds also shows how language, particularly narrative, can repair relationships or mend bridges between people… The point of language in moments like these… [is] simply to make a thoughtful offering in the hope that it meets with understanding, and maybe to build community. This, I believe, is the most important work that Nelson is doing with his words, and I look forward to seeing what he does with them next.”—Brooklyn Rail
“An ode to the West African immigrant community in London, a coming-of-age tale of young love and yearning, and a quietly powerful meditation on intergenerational conflict and trauma… Small Worlds is an achingly tender, exquisitely rendered portrait of a truly beautiful soul.”—Literary Hub
“There’s something wide-eyed and lovely about the way Caleb Aumah Nelson writes about what it is to be young and alive to the world…This novel is about the dynamic between a father and son over three summers in London and Ghana, but it is also about music, and dancing, and those pleasures in life that are simple and yet also everything.”—Esquire,Most Anticipated Books of 2023
“Finely drawn and lyrical.”—GQ
“Observed with candour and flowing clarity.”—Financial Times
“Deeply intimate and poetic.”—Marie Claire(UK)
“Emotionally astute… not only touching but well formed.”—New Statesman (UK)
“Small Worlds resonates and reverberates with the true language of our souls. Drop the needle on it.”—Irish Times
“Both intimate and international, anchored by a timeless story of friendship and growing up.”—The Millions
“Written in exquisite prose infused with lyricism, the book examines the unexpected repercussions of life decisions and explores such themes as faith, friendship, and authenticity.”—Christian Science Monitor
“A beautifully rich novel celebrating love and art and conducting an in-depth exploration of the joys and pains of Black youth.”—Booklist
“Astonishing…Nelson’s assured writing captures the pulse of a dance party, the heat of a family’s bond, and the depth of spiritual fervor to conjure a story as infectious as a new favorite song.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review
“The musicality of Nelson’s language underscores this vibrant and deeply moving tale of love, family, and coming of age. While stories of conflict between first-and second-generation immigrants are common, the cultural richness and specificity of Nelson’s narrative rises above tropes and stereotypes.”—Library Journal, starred review
“Azumah Nelson’s characters are intelligent, and his poetic, elastic, bright prose has an uplifting energy, even when he’s writing about the pain of loneliness...Azumah Nelson is something new: an unashamedly clever, spiritual, angry, loving voice in fiction, just when we need it most. Small Worlds is a book for everyone…. No one could fail to feel the message, of always striving for emotional honesty and hope, that is at the heart of this uplifting symphony of a summer read.”—Times (UK) “An affecting meditation on the migrant experience.”—Guardian (UK)
“Nelson is a rhythmic writer, using repeated motifs–variations on phrases about what we remember and what we forget, about dancing to solve problems, about the way the sun catches the back of a loved one’s neck–to make this touching novel perfectly formed too.”—New Statesman (UK) “Rare life ripples through this hymn to a city’s rhythms.”—Daily Mail (UK)
“What makes Azumah Nelson so seductive is the way he nails how it feels to be young, in love, in London in the summer, with possibility stretching out ahead. His territory is the after-hours funk clubs of Deptford and Peckham frequented by black people in search of music and kinship; the Caribbean cafés that stay open into the small hours; the journeys back home on the night bus. Thanks to his supple, lambent prose, it’s a landscape that dazzles.”—Telegraph (UK)
“Small Worlds is a miracle of observation, of attention and attunement. Caleb Azumah Nelson writes prose that is unmatched in its musicality and sensitivity. A gorgeous, rhapsodic, wise novel.”—Katie Kitamura, author of Intimacies
“The rhythms of Small Worlds are a feature of Nelson’s quiet, particular ear and of a profound engagement with music. Nelson writes about closeness, with family, with lovers, with art, as careful, essential labour.”—Raven Leilani, New York Times bestselling author of Luster “A novel that feels as intimate as it does expansive; Caleb Azumah Nelson has given to us a love story that goes beyond two people. Instead, there are no bounds to his exploration of exactly what the heart can feel. Beautiful, unforgettable and all-consuming.”—Candice Carty-Williams, Sunday Times bestselling author of Queenie "In his beautiful new novel Nelson summons the sounds of Black Youth, love and discovery to the page. A celebration of the heart."—Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, author of Friday Black “Touching, heartfelt, and musically rich.”—Diana Evans, author of Ordinary People
Library Journal
★ 05/01/2023
Nelson's follow-up to his Costa Award—winning and National Book Foundation "5 Under 35" debut novel Open Water is a loving portrait of a British Ghanaian community in London, told through the eyes of Stephen, a young aspiring jazz musician. During the last few weeks of high school and the following summer, his relationship with his longtime friend and bandmate Del blossoms into romance, but their attendance at different colleges forces a rift. Disillusioned, Stephen drops out and returns home, exacerbating a conflict with his father, who shows disdain at Stephen's apparent lack of direction and dreams of a music career. Only a family tragedy leads them slowly toward reconciliation. Throughout the novel, its title refers variously to the Ghanaian immigrant community centered on cultural touchstones, including food, music, and faith; families biological or chosen; and romantic relationships between two people. VERDICT The musicality of Nelson's language underscores this vibrant and deeply moving tale of love, family, and coming of age. While stories of conflict between first- and second-generation immigrants are common, the cultural richness and specificity of Nelson's narrative rises above tropes and stereotypes.—Christine DeZelar-Tiedman
SEPTEMBER 2023 -- AudioFile
Like his writing, Caleb Azumah Nelson's narration employs a musical cadence. This story is about a young first-generation Black Englishman whose parents are from Ghana. He navigates coming into his own through a variety of experiences. Nelson's voice is steady and consistent. He employs a poetic structure in each line. The descriptions of his relationships, whether it is the unrest between him and his father or the unfolding of intimate moments with a girlfriend, are like staccato notes. Line after line, his work is filled with both calmness and urgency. His voice is jazz-like--thick with moments of improvisation. The beauty of this story is in the author's rhythmic poeticized narration. T.E.C. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
