First published 2020
A mother finds her son Vivek's lifeless body on her doorstep, wrapped in colorful fabric. As the family grapples with this sudden loss, they uncover the gentle yet troubled spirit that defined Vivek's short life. Raised by a distant father and overprotective mother, Vivek's blackouts and disconnection from self plague his coming-of-age. He finds solace in the boisterous Nigerwives, foreign-born women married to Nigerian men, and his closest bond is with his high-spirited cousin Osita. But Vivek's escalating crisis ultimately leads to a heart-stopping act of violence, shattering the family forever.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, african-literature, contemporary, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Nigeria
Period: 21st-century
248 pages · Hardcover · Faber & Faber
Content warnings: mental-illness, suicide