Speak No Evil (Iweala novel)

Speak No Evil is a 2018 novel by Nigerian American writer Uzodinma Iweala.

In his second novel, Iweala tells the story of Niru, a Nigerian-American high school senior living in a middle-class suburb of Washington, D.C. Niru comes out as gay to his white straight friend, Meredith. The first part of the book is told by Niru, while the last part is told by Meredith. Niru has to figure out how to balance his many identities: being a Black man in America, the child of Nigerian immigrants, from a middle-class family, and being gay. He faces both advantages and challenges because of these identities. The book also explores religion, cultural differences, mental health, police violence, and more, which make Niru’s life and identity even more complex.

 Plot 
Niru, a Nigerian-American high school senior living in a middle-class suburb of Washington, D.C., tells his white straight friend Meredith that he is gay after turning down her romantic advances. To help him, Meredith puts dating apps like Tinder and Grindr on Niru’s phone and encourages him to meet a man named Ryan. When Niru loses his phone, his father finds it and sees messages from Ryan, revealing Niru’s sexuality to his parents. His father reacts by beating Niru and taking him to Nigeria for what he calls a "spiritual revival." Niru feels angry at his father because he dislikes visiting Nigeria, finding it uncomfortable due to the heat and lack of modern amenities.

In the second half of Speak No Evil, we continue to see the struggles of intersections that occur with Niru for being a gay, black man in America. Upon Niru's return to America, he and his family attempt to go back to normal, as though nothing happened. Niru's father takes his phone and gives him a Nokia phone that has no access to the internet and that can only be used to call. Niru is required to meet weekly with their church's pastor, Reverend Olumide. Niru goes to a party after his first track meet and gets drunk, getting into a fight with Meredith and eventually being taken care of by a stranger (later revealed to be Damien). He eventually begins to form a romantic relationship with Damien, and tries to find a balance between the various worlds and spaces that he exists in: his home and school lives, where he must hide his sexual identity, and the space in which he exists with Damien. Niru begins to distance himself from everyone, including Meredith.  During a somewhat sexual encounter with Damien, Niru pushes him away and leaves, leaving their relationship in a tense place. Shortly after Niru makes up with his friend Meredith. Everything comes to a head after Niru's last track meet of the school year. Niru runs away from his father, and eventually ends up going to a club with Meredith, which ends up with him getting shot by the police and dying. The final third of the novel is then told from the perspective of Meredith, and illustrates her struggles, as well as the struggles of Niru's father, to grapple with and comes to terms with the aftermath of Niru's death.

 References 

Category:2018 books

Category:21st-century American novels
Category:Books about sexuality