I am broken; in pieces; come undone by the prose and genius of nelson.

Small worlds was such a tender read; one that speaks of the silences we try too hard to fill. It’s a narration of the delicate threads that bind our small worlds together—the intricacies of family, friendship, and love.

I wish I could find the words to explain what it felt like to read the last two chapters. I was dizzy with emotion; nelson’s words racked through me like a tsunami in summertime. Reading small world was like coming up for air after spending a century underwater—giving clarity, reprieve, relief; someone has finally found the words to explain the moments in between.

Nelson tackles the struggles of growing up an immigrant amidst a world that refuses to remain silent in their prejudice. He talks about the love of a family that shines through music and a shared meal. His narrative speaks of intergenerational trauma; how our past and inability to forgive casts its shadow on everything we do. He describes the loneliness that comes with growing up; how that feeling of loss can make you spiral into the darkest depths of your thoughts.

Despite the vast differences in our culture, I felt such a deep connection with Stephen and how he viewed the world. Found myself crying as I finished this in the morning. Will pick up Open Water for sure.

This is an incredible book about the small worlds which we inhabit, exploring identity, place, family, and love. The use of repeititon gives a poetic feel to the narrative, and the nature of the complicated father son relationship is beautifully explored. The theme of vulnerability first explored in Open Water is further developed here, and ties together with the other themes in the story.

I gave this book five stars.

My review on TikTok is to be posted soon.

After loving Open Water, I was excited to pick up Small Worlds. This follows Stephen over three summers in both London and Ghana. At its core, it's a book about familial relationships (particularly between fathers and sons and that heavy sense of expectation), faith, grief, trauma, racism, discrimination and friendship (both blossoming and fracturing).

Caleb's uniquely poetic and lyrical prose once again shines through in Small Worlds. He effortlessly weaves current issues into Stephen's storyline and how they impact his life as a Black Brit. I also loved that the arts (music, dancing and singing) were such a strong part of the book; almost like their own character. This was truly a love story beyond that between two people. It was about embracing the simplicities in life.

Not having read Nelson's first book, I went into Small Worlds with no expectations.

We begin by following a young man, Stephen, during the course of the summer, in London, he's graduating from high school and, hopefully, going to University for Music,

We're introduced to his Ghanian family, still very much connected to their roots and to family in Ghana, whom they visit annually. And to Stephen's friends and possible love interests.

I found the writing lyrical, musical, filled with energy. Perhaps one could call this style "overwritten" but not having read Nelson's first book, I'm not sure if this is simply his writing style.

The book then moves ahead to college - things aren't as Stephen had wanted them to be is all I'll say to avoid spoilers. And then we move ahead another year and experience Stephen a little older, trying to get settled, having relationships, experiencing life's ups and downs.

I was rooting for Stephen the entire way in this book. I really enjoyed being in the atmosphere of his family, his community, his friends, through all of the ups and downs.

um dos livros mais lindos e doloridos que eu já li na minha vida, mas tbm um dos mais necessários! eu nem sei como descrever a escrita do Caleb e o quao perfeita ela foi.

O livro acompanha o menino Stephen em três fases da sua vida e como a presença da musica é um dos motivos para ele continuar a sonhar a ponto de ela tbm ser o motivo de ele se afastar dos pai e tbm a maneira como ele se reconectam.

além de falar sobre o assunto super delicado que é a imagraçao e como eles estao sempre tentando criar um lugar para si... e infelizmente sobre a violencia policial que eles sofrem.

simplesmente, perfeito e eu amei a oportunidade de le-lo.

This book is absolute art.. This book is all about rhythm; the rhythm of music, the rhythm of life, and the rhythm of a well crafted story. This book is lyrical and completely moves you in the same way that a good song can make you move. It lifts you up the way music does and when it comes to a halt you feel the shift in the moment , the shift in the story.. and during these shifts my heart felt heavy for Stephen. For a young man struggling with loneliness and his place in the world. I think the author did an excellent job highlighting what is going on for some young men right now. It is a subtle feeling of confusion and loss. Stephens struggle is both familiar and unique and I think young male readers could see parts of themselves in Stephens story..

absolutely stunning. i’m completely floored! every single word, sentence, phrase and page was exquisitely crafted. i felt transported into the world - i could smell, see and hear what was going on so clearly. this writer is something special! beautiful.

Caleb Azumah Nelson has such a beautiful way with words, I absolutely fell in love with Open Water and the way he writes truly draws the reader into the story and the lives of the characters. Small Worlds, an exceptional follow-up to his wonderful debut, is a raw and honest exploration of father-son relationships and the pressure on a young black man to not only find his place in a society that often feels he is on the outside of, but also to navigate the turbulent reality of trying to live up to parental expectations without giving up on personal aspirations. Nelson paints a stunning portrait of his protagonist and I was absorbed into his world, I couldnt put the book down and this is often difficult to achieve in a character-oriented novel.

I absolutely could not recommend this more highly, another brilliant release from a very up-and-coming writer, I am already looking forward to his next release!

3.5, rounded downwards. I enjoyed this slightly less than Nelson's debut novel Open Water, from which Small Worlds felt like a natural progression. It's clear that he's growing as a novelist while maintaining the core features of what worked so well for him last time, but he threw in too many discordant elements this time, signaling his wider and deeper ambitions.

We follow our first-person narrator Stephen, the son of working-class Ghanaian immigrants to Peckham through three climactic years from his late teens into his early 20s: a love story with a childhood friend, his alienation from a disapproving father, his untimely experiences with grief, his return visit to family in Accra, searching for the unspoken parts of his parents' love story. While Open Water felt more raw, loose, and improvisatory, Nelson has masterfully structured and paced the narrative, braiding themes and variations, setting the life experiences of Stephen and his striving parents in counterpoint-- especially in a moving and heartbreaking penultimate chapter told from their perspective.

On the plus side, this was another amazing multimedia reading experience. After cueing up the official <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0JeZD3Jd67kGtSpVeXE488">Spotify playlist</a> of early 2000s hip-hop and old-school R&B, I was convinced by Nelson's refrain that life's problems can be solved by dancing. And Nelson makes a persuasive case for the life-giving potential of art: Stephen's love for playing jazz trumpet sustains him through setbacks, and his mastery of West African cooking in a restaurant sous-chef gig provides a way of finding the core of his identity.

But on a sentence-by-sentence and page-by-page level, this felt a bit unfinished and forced, with some clunkily melodramatic dialogue. Some of this was the consequence of viewing the experiences of a protagonist whose own emotions were messy and raw as he was uncertainly navigating his way into adulthood. But some of the emotional beats felt histrionic and unearned, and the connections to contemporary history (the murder of Mark Duggan and the riots) seemed awkwardly bolted on. And since Stephen is reporting the life-stories of the other characters (especially Del, his childhood friend and love interest) through second-hand explanations, they seemed flat and lacking in interiority.

After this, I would still look forward to reading anything that Nelson will write, and this gave me entry into a world I would like to revisit. Especially the deep cuts by J Dilla....

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for giving me an ARC, in return for an honest and unbiased review.</i>

Ok this is just spectacular, I loved it so much I read it twice. I read the ebook then because the entire book feels like an album, like music, I had to listen to the audiobook. Then I needed the physical book of course just to hug.

Feelings I had whilst reading

Loneliness
Lust
Uninhibited
Anger
Seen
Heartbroken
Hopeful
Home

Of every book I have ever read, no one writes sex like Caleb!

Caleb Azumah Nelson is an incredible talent, beautiful writer and narrator. Just bringing something so beautiful to the ordinary. The awkwardness of interactions, the feeling of home, love, joy, loss… I was so deeply moved by the writing.

I adored Open Water, but this I just loved even more. The way he encapsulates the human experience.

Caleb, I will read anything you write, even a shopping list. Love Emily

Small Worlds is a beautiful story about family, black manhood, love, and overcoming. You are swept away in the beautiful prose that Nelson is so good for. He encaptures the heartbeat of the black community during summer, a continued hum of music in the background and love. Stephen represents a life longing for a connection we can all relate to and hope for.

This is the first novel I have read by Caled Azumah Nelson. Open Water has been on my list for a while, and after reading Small Worlds, I am definitely making sure that I read Open Water.

Small Worlds grapples with many of the difficult subjects that we expect a migration/African postcolonial novel to tackle: generational trauma, slavery, police brutality, and the hardship of building a life elsewhere. What makes Small Worlds an example of the new 21st-century migration novel (in my book) is the fresh perspective it brings to the themes with which we are familiar.

Although the narrator is not necessarily unreliable, he is not perfect. He is eighteen when the novel begins, and he lives for music, his aspiration to become a jazz musician. When he can't receive the scholarship he needs, however, he is forced to grow in ways that are simultaneously painful and fulfilling. His love for free jazz is reflected beautifully in the form of the novel through rhythm (achieved via strategic repetition), thoughts floating, and the way the text itself, like the music, allows Stephen to face his family's tragic history, their move from Ghana to London, and all the other challenges that come his way, following the summer of 2010. But migration doesn't only breed obstacles and pain. I love and appreciate the way Small Worlds also celebrates the beauty of life, love, and community in the face of hardship. The sections on police brutality, slavery, and death are inevitably difficult to read, but the soft, rhythmic language encourages the reader to continue. And then, out of nowhere, amidst sorrow, we see beauty and light emerge. A beautifully written piece of work.

Lyrical prose is one of my favorite things to read and although it’s been a while since I read Open Water, being immersed in Small Worlds was such a joy. This story follows our MMC as he explores the similarities between music/rhythm and the small worlds we build around ourselves and others.
Caleb does such a good job discussing rhythm, language, music, and connection that the book feels like listening to a record from beginning to end. This story also discusses familial relationships, generational trauma, art, and the small pleasures of life. For a short-ish book I thought Small Worlds packed a punch in a way that was quiet, lyrical, and thoughtful.

*Many thank yous to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*

What a joy is was to be amongst Caleb Azumah Nelson’s words again. Imbued with rhythm and packed with nostalgia for a London, and another version of myself who loved to dance, that I miss dearly.

His second book retains that youthful quality, characters coming of age and figuring out what the f to do with all of life ahead of them. I deeply appreciated the spectrum of familial relationships represented in the story. Without saccharine, or overly simplisitc attempts to make family the most important feature of a young person’s life, it showed instead that family can be made of anyone you want it to be.

The romance is front and centre but messy and frustrating, like real life young love. Small Worlds is the closest I will get to fictional romance reading, free from tropes but still makes you inadvertently smile when they tell each other how they feel.

Im sooooo happy I stumbled upon this author!!! Open water was just so beautiful and I just knew Small worlds would be the same!!! Absolutely worth the read!!! The poetic way this author writes is just breathtaking!!! Another W for Mr.Nelson

I love Nelson’s writing, the scenes have this quality, this visual beauty as if they are composed on a 35mm camera — slow, the light is soft, the prose is delicious and beautiful! I love everything by him, what a privilege to read such beautiful prose!!

Open Water is one of my favourite novels so getting to review Caleb Azumah Nelson’s second book Small Worlds had me both excited and nervous. For any fans of his previous work, you are bound to like this because it brings back the incredibly lyrical storytelling and another story that will both soften and harden your heart.

There’s some magic to anything Nelson writes down. As with his previous book, there’s a lot of repetition throughout the book, some themes even repeating from Open Water. Rather than being a bore, it helps drive home certain sentences and their attached messages. There’s also a wide use of different motives and themes that keep returning such as music and dance, and the changing of seasons. Everything feels connected and it reads just as beautifully as one could hope for.

I especially appreciated the way the parallels are drawn between father and son. It builds up more and more to that central theme as you keep on reading and once there’s a switch of perspective, the book becomes all the more meaningful. Some scenes are heartbreaking, others are heart-warming, and it is a perfectly complex story about familial relationships. You’re bound to let out some tears or have goosebumps reading certain scenes. Pure magic.

Whereas Open Water was a love at first page book for me, Small Worlds is one that slowly but surely grows on you. I didn’t think I would relate as much to this but once again, I was pleasantly and painfully surprised when I kept coming back to certain paragraphs, really seeing myself in them. The university chapters especially meant a lot to me and made this book easier to connect to on a personal level. The charm of this book is that I believe anyone can connect to something, even if it’s the smallest detail, making it a must-read for everyone. I am wholly in love with the way Caleb Azumah Nelson writes and I highly recommend picking up Small Worlds if you want to feel something meaningful.

Ahhhh, he’s done it again. Another lyrical masterpiece. I foolishly didn’t write a review at the time of reading in February but vividly remember sitting with tears running down my cheeks on the plane between Hanoi and Singapore as I finished this, so it left a mental mark even if the details are hazy 🙈😭🤣

I won’t bother with a synopsis because I suspect if you loved Open Water as much as I did you’ll be just as keen to hear more from this gorgeous new voice and will pick this up.

I remember some of the same compelling “will they/won’t they” relationship dynamics but predominantly being moved by the father son relationship dynamic and sense of place across Peckham and Ghana. Music, both playing instruments and dancing in clubs give a key sense of self to these characters.

Really gorgeous, a treat to read more from Mr Azumah Nelson. My single criticism is that far too often characters are letting go breaths they didn’t know they were holding 😬😳🙈

Caleb’s prose here is soft and lyrical. Certain sentences are repeated, like the chorus of a song. There’s a very beautiful rhythmic sense to the writing, and it all comes together like music, which is much of the focus, passion, and love that often drives Stephen. It’s enchanting. At moments I found myself humming to songs mentioned that I was familiar with as I read along, and was swept up in the feeling of being so aware and present in a moment in time, like Stephen also felt. Similar to Open Water (another banger, pick it up, NEEEOOOWWW) Nelson also weaves in topics of race and assimilation, the immigrant experience, the limbo of belonging, the gut-wrench of opportunities just out of reach, the loss of something built, the weight of self discovery...and more.

The pace of this book is slow (that ain’t no problem) and the impact of the words are undeniable. I have a lot of thoughts I’m still parsing through but basically, I think I just like the way Nelson’s writing makes me feel, even when my heart is breaking. Like….ouch????

Be sure to give this one a read, friends. Congrats to Caleb Azumah Nelson on another great release, and thanks to Grove Atlantic for my copy!

Small Worlds is a second novel written by a British-Ghanaian author Caleb Azumah Nelson, and where his first one - Open Water - was about “you” - as in a person, a friend, a lover, a Black man -, Small Worlds is more about “us”. A community, a family, a group of friends, a couple. A person as a part of a unit. It’s a careful exploration of identity, of what it means to belong unconditionally and all the expectations, pitfalls and joys it entails. Of what it means to be lost and searching, to try to carve your own way without forgetting your roots. To find and build your own “small world”.

The flow of Small Worlds is unhurried and deliberate. The author takes his time to build a scene and to reflect on everything that happens to the main character and the world around him. The writing style resembles a stream of consciousness but with more aim to it.
It’s never flat! Nelson has a great ability to capture the moment in its emotional movement. The way he writes reminds me of a photograph that you can’t help having a response to. You look at the picture and feel your skin prickle under the sun of that one summer day when everything was light and easy for a moment. Or the coldness of an empty room full of doubts and regrets. Or the scent of your Mother’s flowers she tended to in the backyard of your parents’ house. It’s all very vivid in your head.
I believe that this is Nelson’s greatest strength and a trap he created for himself. It’s easy to get lost in the lyricism, and in Small Worlds he sometimes falls victim to the temptation of overstretching the lyrical moments.

The author touches on many important themes (immigration, social justice, grief), some of which he’s already started to explore in Open Water. His observations and commentary are clever and on point.

An impactful and lyrical read, that continues the line that was started in Nelson’s debut novel.

Thank you, Grove Atlantic and NetGalley for letting me read an advanced e-copy!