Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the eARC of Pride & Joy! I was enamored with this gorgeous exploration of grief and Nigerian culture through the perspective of a Canadian-Nigerian family.

This was insightful and poignant, I found it intriguing and engaging and enjoyed every minute!

Joy is in the midst of setting up for her mother Mary's 70th birthday party when the birthday girl suddenly dies while napping. Already stressed about the party preparations and onslaught of pushy relatives and party guests, Joy's frustrations skyrocket when her aunt declares that a cow has prophesized Mary's resurrection two days hence (on Easter, as it happens). Before Joy knows what's happening, a public access religious program is sending a reporter to interview the family and livestream the resurrection, while hordes of strangers crowd the driveway of the rented home to hold a vigil in anticipation of Mary's return. Throw in a slew of self-centered relatives, an ex-husband Joy still cares for, and a pile of revelations, and it's no wonder Joy is ready to scream.

There's something that I love about dysfunctional family stories, and hoo-boy is this family dysfunctional! The mix of Nigerian culture, religious zeal, and Joy's control-freak nature is a perfect storm of nuttiness, which made the book feel a bit frantic and out of control at times (though, as that could also describe the characters, it's appropriate). If I could change anything, I'd give it a few extra pages of setup at the beginning before the craziness sets in. Otherwise, this was an excellent depiction of grief's many stages in the form of Joy and her relatives.

This is an interesting family-focused novel, with themes of African immigrant families, forming one's own identity, unearthing and healing wounds, and at times laugh out loud funny moments.

The protagonist, Joy, a freshly divorced therapist, plans a weekend with her extended family to celebrate a milestone birthday with her mother. Only her mother unexpectedly dies during the weekend retreat, on Good Friday. Her aunt, a religious woman, declares that like Jesus, her mother will rise on Easter Sunday. This draws in Nigerian diaspora from their Canadian homes to see the spectacle. Over the weekend, siblings and cousins reconnect. Joy struggles with her own grief and setting boundaries with pushy relatives and looky-loos.

The novel started out strong but dragged on in the middle. However, by the end, it all came together. I liked some of the points the author made about viewing mental health through a cultural lens. Joy's observations about what can be lost as a child of immigrants, especially when the older generation passes away, felt powerful.

This would be an enjoyable read for anyone who likes books about complicated family relationships or building a cultural identity as the child of immigrants.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a slow burn for me. It dragged in the beginning and started picking up in the middle. The ending was the best. There are many characters in the book, but it’s easy to follow them. I enjoyed reading about the Nigerian culture and how they view death,religion,& family. Some repetitive phrases throughout.The Igbo language was used in the book, but there was no translation so I was lost on what they were saying. Joy was my favorite character. She was complex but refreshing.

It was overall a okay read. If you enjoy reading about family drama in a culture rich format, then this book is for you. Religion is also woven into the story. Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read this book. This is my honest review.

I received this ARC in exchange for a review from net galley. I think it js an ok book and was pretty interested but at times felt boring and dragged out especially since the whole book is a plot in the span in 3 days.

Pride and Joy is a novel centered around a Nigerian-Canadian family, and takes place over the course of a weekend. The family matriarch, Mary, is turning 70 on Good Friday, and the family is gathering for a birthday celebration. When she doesn't wake from a nap, the family becomes divided by those trying to move forward and grieve her death, and those who believe in her sister, Nancy's, premonition that she will be resurrected on Easter Day. The larger Nigerian community gets hooked into the story of the premonition and the family finds itself in the center of local media attention while they wait for the resurrection.

I really liked how this book wove together the stories of individuals within the same family. Everyone has a unique life and perspective -- the teenagers coming of age, children watching and learning from their parents, adult siblings dealing with past grief and hurt, plus a undercurrent of faith and religion and those believers and those who have moved away from religion and how they deal with each other. The family tree at the start of the book was helpful and I referred back to it often as I tried to remember how everyone was related.

Two things I found a little challenging as a non-Nigerian -- some of the Igbo language thrown in wasn't translated and I was always left trying to figure out the context of what people were saying to each other. In the end it's inconsequential to the story, but still was abrupt when I couldn't understand what was being said. The other was the phrase "he kissed his teeth"/"she kissed his teeth" -- I know what the gesture is but it just seemed like it was overused in the book? My kindle tells me 23 instances of the phrase being used. It felt a bit repetitive to me.

I really liked this book overall. It was a touching story of family and faith, and gave me a look into a Nigerian immigrant family and their traditions.

The Okafor family is preparing for their mother’s 70th birthday party on Easter weekend in Canada — but the weekend takes a turn when Mama Mary is found to have passed away during her nap— and the family has to switch gears and make the weekend into a community affair of a birthday turned -celebration of life/funeral.
This book is full of Nigerian culture and family drama as the family deals with family issues, grief and personality/ religious belief clashes. The book is depicted from multiple POV of different family members with the main character focused on being Joy. The descriptions of cultural beliefs were very interesting for me as the reader. The book is very well written and the author does an excellent job writing the characters and their complex family dynamics. I didn`t find the book comical - but everyone`s sense of humour is different, but the book is full of beautifully written heartfelt moments and a fresh perspective on dealing with grief as a family. I would recommend it to readers who enjoy family dramas, and heartwarming narratives, and those who appreciate a glimpse into a vibrant uplifting culture.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC. This is my honest review.

This book was a slow burn for me but when you finally get to the climax, it's worth it. Looking forward to more from this author.

Pride and Joy by Louisa Onomé is a novel that takes place in present-day (I think) Canada chronicling one Easter Weekend with the Okafor family. The main character Joy has a lot going on and, despite her career as a life coach, is struggling to maintain the many conflicting layers of her life. Joy has spent time organizing a 70th birthday party for her mother and she wants everything to go perfect so as not to have to deal with the displeasure of her extended Nigerian family. However, Mama Mary takes a nap before the festivities and passes away in her sleep. Aunt Nancy, Mary’s sister, is convinced her sister is going to be resurrected on Easter Sunday because she passed away on Good Friday, her birthday and causes an intimate family moment to become a big community affair. What once was supposed to be a celebration of Mama Mary becomes a spectacle that Joy can barely handle while managing the varying personalities of her family and her grief.

Though Joy is the main character of this book, the narrative is layered with the voices of nearly the entire cast of characters because there are multiple POV shifts throughout. It’s almost as if they’re like vignettes of that moment in time with the character whose viewpoint it is. It switches often and though there are quite a few characters, knowing who they are is not too difficult. Having said this, the Nigerian way of referring to relatives was a bit confusing to me at first and I had to refer back to the family tree at the beginning of the book quite often for the first few chapters. I am making an assumption here based on its prevalence in the book, but I had no idea that cousins referred to the siblings of their grandparents as grandma and grandpa. I also had no idea that all elders were referred to as aunties and uncles regardless of family relation. The looseness of these honorifics were frustrating for me at first as an outsider to the culture, but it does not detract from the beauty of or my engagement in the story.

Another thing that I enjoyed structurally about the novel is that each chapter title is a time stamp letting us know what day and what time it is at the start of the chapter. This was clever for Onomé to do because the story is quite literally a countdown of waiting to see if Mama Mary will resurrect on Easter Sunday. It also highlights how many things have happened and how this family event snowballed into a colossal community affair in the short span of one holiday weekend. I really appreciated this aspect of the book because it helped me keep track of how time was moving, which I usually find lacking in books.

The cast of characters in the novel are lively and distinct though I did find nearly all of them to be quite annoying with very little redeeming qualities. I do feel because there were so many to focus on and we got snippets of all their POVs within the span of the novel there wasn’t enough time to develop them all to the point where I would care about the nuances of their behaviors and choices. Sure, most of them had reasons for why they behaved the way they did, but there just wasn’t enough time in this novel for me to care about those reasons. Cutting down on some of the POV shifts could have allowed more time to dig deeper into the stories of a few key characters instead. For Joy, I sometimes found her character descriptions to be conflicting and I do not feel that enough time was dedicated to her POV so that her transformation could be fully seen. Having said this, I was invested in how she would fare by the end of this weekend and though I was not completely satisfied with the ending (it felt a tad rushed in the character aha moment), I was not disappointed either.

Where the characters lack individually, as a whole they are dynamic and where they shined was in their interactions with one another. Though I mentioned that I am unfamiliar with Nigerian culture, the varied characters felt very much like any family when they get together. There are family members you may not enjoy the company of and those you have an easier time getting along with. Family can be judgmental and hurtful. Family can also be your greatest supporters and the ones who have your back in the toughest of times. Despite my annoyance with characters, this aspect had me emotionally invested in what happened to this family and their weekend together dealing with the loss of their loved one.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I’d read other titles by Onomé. I was angered, I cried, I laughed, I smiled, I felt joy (no pun intended) while reading this. I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes reading stories that give you a peek into the lives of ordinary people.

Nigerian families can be A LOT. I know this on a personal level. I related to a lot of the feelings Joy felt throughout the book, and was engaged the whole time! Can’t wait to read more from this author!

This was an interesting novel about a Nigerian family and the intricacies of tradition and the western world uniting. The way we can sometimes dramatize our faith to do many things like oppress and manipulate. Funny at times and unnerving at others. Would recommend

Louisa Onomé's "Pride and Joy" takes you on a journey through the lives of the Okafors, a Nigerian Canadian family grappling with their matriarch's sudden passing. The story begins with Joy Okafor, recently divorced and overwhelmed by her duties as a life coach. As she meticulously plans her mother's seventieth birthday celebration, the unexpected occurs when Mama Mary passes away.

This novel shares the complexities of family relationships seamlessly, with a cast of deeply flawed and relatable characters. Each family member comes to life on the page, and their individual stories and struggles add depth and authenticity to the narrative.

As an African-American reader, I appreciated the small but enriching glimpse into Nigerian culture, which is artfully interwoven into the story. The author's portrayal of the family dynamics, cultural elements, and the grieving process is poignant and insightful.

Joy's journey, in particular, resonates deeply as she grapples with the loss of her mother and the chaos that Auntie Nancy's beliefs bring to the family. The emotional depth and the conflicting feelings surrounding grief are well portrayed. Joy's inner turmoil and the tension within the family are palpable, making her a character that readers can empathize with.

While I personally did not find the book as comical as some might, it is undeniably an enjoyable and interesting read. The story's unique blend of humor and heartfelt moments offers a refreshing perspective on dealing with loss and the bonds that tie families together.

In conclusion, "Pride and Joy" is a beautifully written novel with memorable characters and a rich exploration of Nigerian Canadian culture. I would recommend it to readers who enjoy family dramas, heartwarming narratives, and those who appreciate a glimpse into a vibrant culture. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

It’s just something about Nigerian families that makes a book so entertaining. You get drama and the shade all in one along with a deeper understanding that makes it all worthwhile. Especially the symbolism at the end😭.

This book was sort of shaped like a wave. It started small and messy and you couldn't quite tell where it was building to or what you were supposed to be looking at. Then, it grew and started to feel unstoppable, bigger and bigger and like you almost didn't want to be in it but you had no choice by then. And at the end, after the crash, there was this powerful but much quieter story; you could relax into it and just sit with the character's joy and pain. The last 15% of the book was my favorite, but it only worked for me like that because it was the payoff after the wave crash. I didn't know if i would like it at the beginning, but i grew really attached to a lot of the characters!

You know that parable about someone being overwhelmed and the rabbi saying to keep bringing the animals from the farm into the house, and then finally she gets to put them back outside at the end and it feels like such a relief? I had that feeling at the end, when i was following like 8 characters closely and was like "ONLY 8 OF THEM? WHAT A TINY NUMBER! SO MUCH LESS THAN BEFORE WHEW."

A beautiful story unlike anything I have recently read. I like that - when an author's work can suck me in and surprise me. I was left remembering this book and the characters. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars!

Loved Joy and her family. Was invested from the very first page. A raw look at grief and loving one’s family for who they are. Loved the gay and lesbian representation especially within an African family. Beautifully written and thought provoking on what comes after death.

As a person who still chooses books by their covers this did not disappoint. I also chose this book because of its Nigerian roots. My partner comes from Nigeria. When reading these stories I feel like I am getting closer to them. It has also been a great conversation starter. My partner is very religious and I see myself more like joy. Being the outsider within the family. My partner has told me stories of how they handle death, the juju and of course the aunties. But I digress, this book is well written, engaging, tearful and yet enjoyable. I look forward to more by Onomé.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed the book. I loved the overall plot and character development.