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Freshwater (novel)

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Freshwater
Freshwater
AuthorAkwaeke Emezi
LanguageEnglish
GenreFiction, Autobiography
PublisherGrove Press
Publication date
13 February 2018
Publication placeNigeria
AwardsNommo Award, Otherwise Award
ISBN9780802128997

Freshwater is a 2018 autobiographical fiction novel by Nigerian writer Akwaeke Emezi.[1][2][3] Emezi's debut novel, it tells the story of Ada, a girl with multiple ogbanje dwelling inside her.[4]

Freshwater won both the Nommo Novel Award and Otherwise Award in 2019, and was nominated for several other awards and prizes.[5][6]

Plot

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Freshwater tells the semi-autobiographical story of the protagonist, known to the reader as 'The Ada'. The main narratorial voice of the novel is ogbanje, deities from Igbo religion, that occupy the Ada, and manifests in multiple distinct and characterised personalities, both helpful and antagonistic.

The plot follows a fragmented account of the Ada's life. The first segment of the novel discusses the Ada's birth and the nature of the ogbanje. This is followed by a general account of her childhood in Nigeria, including Christianity and distant parents. This section is narrated in plural first person by the dormant ogbanje living inside her.

As a teenager, the Ada moves to the United States to study biology, where her college boyfriend, Soren, repeatedly rapes her. The trauma of this event causes the dormant ogbanje to change inside her, leading to the development of a unique ogbanje personality known as Asughara. Asughara harms the Ada's body to please the ogbanje spirits that reside in her. At the same time, another personality known as St Vincent emerges, who is male, calmer, and initially quiet. Following the emergence of these unique ogbanje personalities, there is a constant struggle for control over the Ada's life, and when the ogbanje seize control, they engage in self-destructive behavior, including self-harm, mastectomy, hypersexuality, and alcohol abuse.

The plot climaxes as Asughara attempts to kill the Ada, which is seen as both murder from one personality to another, and also as suicide. The attempt fails, and after the Ada's hospitalisation, she travels back to Nigeria for the closing action of the story, where she connects with a shaman.

In the final section of the novel, the Ada reflects on her personalities and the nature of the ogbanje in an introspective manner, as she gains a sense of wholeness to her identity. She also discloses abuse she experienced as a child.

Themes

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The story of Freshwater is broken up and fragmented through both time and narratorial voice. The narrator often changes between chapter, between the initial first person plural of the ogbanje, Asughara, St Vincent, and eventually the Ada herself, who doesn't gain a voice in her own story until well into the novel. The organisation of the story within the novel is arranged so that the action is more centred around the ogbanje's journey and conflict than the Ada's.

Emezi explores their Igbo heritage's views on spirituality and gender roles alongside those of Western construction and invites readers to think critically about the spirit/body binary.[3][1]

Reception

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The New Yorker called Freshwater "a startling début novel";[4] The Guardian called it "a remarkable debut";[7] and the LA Times called it "dazzling".[8] Freshwater was longlisted for numerous significant awards.[9] Freshwater was a New York Times Notable Book,[10] was named a Best Book of the Year by the New Yorker[11] and NPR.[12] Emezi is also recognized as a 2018 National Book Foundation "5 Under 35" honoree.[13]

In 2019, Freshwater was nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction — the first time a non-binary transgender author has been nominated for the prize. Williams said that the panel did not know Emezi was non-binary when the book was chosen, but she said Emezi was happy to be nominated.[14] After the nomination, the Women's Prize Trust formulated new guidelines for transgender authors,[15] and as of 2020 requires authors to be "legally female" without regard to either sex or gender identity.[16]

Controversy

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The first editions of "Freshwater" name-dropped Emezi's work with Nigerian author and feminist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. After Emezi posted tweets regarding Adichie in 2021, Adichie asked that all references to her name be removed from the "about the author" section of the book jacket on all future copies of Freshwater.[17][18]

Adaptation

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In May 2019, news announced that the novel was optioned by FX for a TV series adaptation.[19] Emezi was scheduled to write the screenplay and executive produce the series with Tamara P. Carter. FX Productions planned to produce it alongside Kevin Wandell and Lindsey Donahue.[19][20] As of 2025, there was no evidence of the adaptation moving forward.

Awards

[edit]
Year Award Category Result Ref.
2018 The Brooklyn Public Library Literary Prize Nominated [9]
Center for Fiction First Novel Prize — Shortlisted [21]
2019 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence Fiction Longlisted [22]
Aspen Words Literary Prize — Longlisted [23][24]
Nommo Award Novel Won [25][26]
Otherwise Award — Won [27]
PEN/Hemingway Award — Finalist [28][29]
Women's Prize for Fiction — Longlisted [14]
Young Lions Fiction Award — Finalist [30]

References

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  1. ^ a b "In 'Freshwater,' A College Student Learns To Live With Separate Selves". NPR.org. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  2. ^ "Akwaeke Emezi: 'I'd read everything – even the cereal box'". the Guardian. October 20, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Mzezewa, Tariro (February 26, 2018). "In This Debut Novel, a College Student Hears Voices". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Waldman, Katy (February 26, 2018). "A Startling Début Novel Explores the Freedom of Being Multiple". ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  5. ^ "Nommo 2019: Novel Nominations - African Speculative Fiction Society". www.africansfs.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  6. ^ Lothian, Alexis (April 11, 2020). "Akwaeke Emezi wins 2019 Otherwise Award! Honor List Announced « Otherwise Award". Otherwise Award. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  7. ^ Adébáyò, Ayòbámi (November 15, 2018). "Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi review – a remarkable debut". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  8. ^ Straight, Susan (February 16, 2018). "A dazzling, devastating novel: 'Freshwater' by Akwaeke Emezi". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "The Brooklyn Public Library Literary Prize". www.bklynlibrary.org. March 20, 2017. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  10. ^ "100 Notable Books of 2018". The New York Times. November 19, 2018. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  11. ^ Waldman, Katy (December 4, 2018). "The Best Books of 2018". ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  12. ^ "NPR's Book Concierge Our Guide To 2018's Great Reads". apps.npr.org. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  13. ^ Schaub, Michael (September 24, 2018). "National Book Foundation unveils this year's '5 Under 35' picks". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  14. ^ a b Cain, Sian (March 4, 2019). "Non-binary trans author nominated for Women's prize for fiction". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
  15. ^ Wood, Heloise. "Women's Prize to formulate new policy around gender criteria". TheBookSeller.com. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  16. ^ "Women's Prize for Fiction confirms all trans women are eligible, but non-binary authors must be 'legally female' to enter". Pink News. October 6, 2020. Retrieved May 13, 2025.
  17. ^ "'It is obscene': Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie pens blistering essay against social media sanctimony". The Guardian. June 16, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  18. ^ Phiri, Aretha. "Adichie and Emezi: ignore the noise, pay attention to the conversation". The Conversation. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Otterson, Joe (May 22, 2019). "FX to Develop Series Adaptation of Akwaeke Emezi's 'Freshwater' With Tamara P. Carter (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  20. ^ Simon, Jordan. "'Freshwater': FX Developing Series Adaptation Based On Akwaeke Emezi's Acclaimed Debut Novel". Shadow and Act. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  21. ^ "The Center for Fiction". www.centerforfiction.org. Archived from the original on February 26, 2019. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  22. ^ "Andrew Carnegie Medals Longlist | Awards & Grants". www.ala.org. Archived from the original on June 19, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  23. ^ "AKWAEKE EMEZI". Aspen Words. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  24. ^ "7 Tips on Writing Fiction from Aspen Words Literary Prize Nominees". The Aspen Institute. January 10, 2019. Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  25. ^ "Announcing the 2019 Nommo Award Winners". October 25, 2019. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  26. ^ "Nommo 2019: Novel Nominations – African Speculative Fiction Society". www.africansfs.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  27. ^ Lothian, Alexis (April 11, 2020). "Akwaeke Emezi wins 2019 Otherwise Award! Honor List Announced « Otherwise Award". Otherwise Award. Archived from the original on June 16, 2023. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  28. ^ "2019 PEN/Hemingway Award Finalists Announced | The Hemingway Society". www.hemingwaysociety.org. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  29. ^ "Akwaeke Emezi". Women's Prize for Fiction. Archived from the original on November 20, 2019. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  30. ^ "Young Lions Fiction Award Finalists". locusmag.com. May 21, 2019. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
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