THE PLOT: The Recovery House by Derek Owusu is a literary novel about a young poet recovering from a mental breakdown. When Jamal wakes up in a recovery house, the circumstances surrounding his admittance feel unclear but inevitable. Trapped by his writing and burdened by the pressure of creativity, he retreats into the quiet, stark sanctuary of his room. Yet as he spends more time in this world, he ventures into the garden and develops relationships with the tender souls around him. Within the walls, he slowly starts to find faith in the future and a sense of belonging.
SUMMARY: Literary novels like this one can be hard to read. Each short chapter is a stream of consciousness; a run-on sentence for 1 or 2 pages with no full stops. I firmly believe that this technique is hit or miss based on the frequency of the reader’s brain vibing with the author’s. You need to have a similar pattern of speech, or at least the ability to get into the author’s rhythm, to navigate such writing. However, when it all connects it flows beautifully. I connected with this novel. The short chapters made it easy to read and I became absorbed in the world-building as the writing style strongly evoked the character’s mental state. Although the description was sparse, the tense yet tender atmosphere was palpable. I took the author’s advice to listen to ‘Zombie’ by the Cranberries on repeat before reading and, although it may have been a joke, it kept replaying through my mind and added to my experience. I would strongly recommend this novel and particularly recommend listening to the song beforehand.
GOOD BITS: This novel appealed to me because I felt an affinity with the main character. Although I am most definitely not a published author, the book articulated some of my struggles with creativity. The character isn’t necessarily in pursuit of literary success, but the pressure to succeed cripples him regardless. There’s also a clear character arc despite this being a quiet novel. The friendships formed in the recovery house help illustrate the character’s journey back into connection with others. I found the selection of different personalities realistic and moving, particularly the friendship with Joy.
NOT SO GOOD BITS: This book felt perfectly formed in line with the author’s intentions, so I don’t have any strong critiques but I am curious about a few choices. The main character has a boyfriend but I feel like sexuality in the context of Christianity isn’t fully explored. Sexual identity doesn’t have to be a large part of a novel and can sometimes become a distraction because people (and characters) are more than that. However, as the main character recovers it feels disingenuous that his relationship and sexuality wouldn’t be a feature of him grappling with his mental heath and faith.
OVERALL: I’d recommend this book to fans of The Selfless Act of Breathing by J J Bola, Milk Fed by Melissa Broder, and Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson. If you’re interested in literary novels about male mental health, order this book now.
Thank you to #MerkyBooks for my #gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
You can purchase this book (with a discount) and support @aminasbookshelf via my bookshop.org. affiliate link.
