Ikenga

I love the concept of this novel - a Nigerian superhero story with a kid as the protagonist - but I feel like it wants to be a comic book. It should be a comic book. Something about this book disconnected for me in a way that I didn't experience with Akata Witch. Some of the elements of the protagonist's internal struggle feel a little restricted - either by the younger target audience, or maybe just because I don't remember what being twelve feels like - but either way there were moments when I sat back and couldn't suspend my disbelief any more. It's still an exciting idea, and I still would love to see an adaptation of this story into a more visual medium.

This was a wholesome story. In some ways simple and pure. I didn’t hate anything about it, but I also didn’t especially love anything about it either. Superhero stories are so often revenge fantasies, and this flirted with that trope a bit. But there was innocence too, and growing up, and wrestling with anger.

Worth a read.