Pride and Joy

Starred review from January 15, 2024
Onome blends humor and pathos in her captivating adult debut (after the YA novel The Melancholy Summer), which finds a Nigerian Canadian woman attempting to find redemption by hosting her mother’s 70th birthday party. Joy Okafor Bianchi, a mental health counselor and recently divorced single mother, has taken on the task of hosting her mother Mary Okafor’s weekend celebration in the suburbs of Toronto, and she invites family and friends from across Canada and the U.S. to share in the festivities. The morning of the party, however, Joy’s 12-year-old son, Jamil, discovers that his grandmother has died peacefully in her sleep. The day also happens to be Good Friday, and Mama Mary’s sister, Nancy Akintola, comes to believe—after a premonition involving a brown cow on the side of the road—that her dear sister will rejoin them in the land of the living in an Easter miracle. Joy, despite her skepticism, finds some parts of herself wanting to believe her mother will walk through the door on Easter Sunday. Onome’s rich storytelling is enhanced by authentic descriptions of traditional Nigerian music and foods, such as Egosi soup and chin chin, as her characters come together amid great loss. Readers will savor Onome’s vibrant portrait of a family. Agent: Claire Friedman, InkWell Management.

Starred review from January 1, 2024
Joy Okafor doesn't always see eye to eye with her Nigerian Canadian family. Her recent divorce has set tongues wagging, she's overwhelmed with work, and she's still struggling with grief after the death of her twin sister 11 years ago. A family party is the last thing that Joy wants to deal with, but her mother, Mary's, seventieth birthday has arrived, so the family gathers for a weekend-long celebration--which turns into something else entirely when Mary dies, unexpectedly, in her sleep. Mary's deeply religious sister Nancy insists that she's received a message from God telling her that Mary will be resurrected in three days. As word spreads in the community about the possible resurrection, a time of mourning and reflection turns into an out-of-control circus, with Joy stuck in the middle. In her adult debut, Onom� explores themes of family, grief, and belonging through a unique--yet instantly recognizable--family. Although Joy is at the center of the story, Onom� brings in the perspectives of other family members, giving readers insight into their personal histories and states of mind. A refreshing combination of emotional insight and family comedy; ideal for fans of Dial A for Aunties, by Jesse Q. Sutanto (2021) and Someday, Maybe, by Onyi Nwabineli (2022).

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February 15, 2024
A story of grief and faith within a Nigerian Canadian family. Newly divorced Joy Okafor Bianchi is a life coach hanging by a thread as she struggles to ensure that every last detail of her mother's 70th birthday goes according to plan. Her dreams of a perfect celebration are dashed when her 13-year-old niece discovers Mama Mary has died in her sleep, on Good Friday no less. Further complicating matters, Mary's sister, Nancy, is convinced her sibling will rise again on Easter Sunday owing to a premonition involving a brown cow. Immediately, Mary's passing turns into an absurdist spectacle as news reporters and community members flock to the house to witness this miracle. Unsurprisingly, disaster, insensitivity, and long-buried family secrets soon follow. YA novelist Onom�'s adult debut features a sprawling cast of characters that ultimately prove too unwieldy to manage effectively. Perspectives rapidly rotate, and one-off characters with no clear narrative significance nevertheless take up precious space. While the author creates compelling young people who struggle with grief appropriately for their age, the adults tend to be unlikable at best, immature at worst. At one point, out of nowhere, a character remarks, "Isn't it weird how our kids are pretty much the same age, except you got pregnant out of wedlock?" with all the subtlety of a middle school mean girl. Joy's mild demeanor feels less like relatable meekness than pathological spinelessness. However, Onom�'s rich portrayal of Nigerian culture, foods, and traditions provides much-needed grounding, and her skillful handling of the difficulties first-generation children face as they straddle two or more cultures remains ever relevant. An uneven novel that's strongest when it simply sits with a child's grief.

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