Riot Baby

"Riot Baby bursts at the seams of story with so much fire, passion and power that in the end it turns what we call a narrative into something different altogether."—Marlon James
Rooted in foundational loss and the hope that can live in anger, Riot Baby is both a global dystopian narrative an intimate family story with quietly devastating things to say about love, fury, and the black American experience.
Ella and Kev are brother and sister, both gifted with extraordinary power. Their childhoods are defined and destroyed by structural racism and brutality. Their futures might alter the world. When Kev is incarcerated for the crime of being a young black man in America, Ella—through visits both mundane and supernatural—tries to show him the way to a revolution that could burn it all down.

I finished this book last night – well actually I read the entire thing last night since 1.) it’s a novella so it’s relatively short, and 2.) it was SO GOOD that I couldn’t put it down. However! I haven’t been able to figure out what I want to say in my review. Various things have been stewing in my head but it feels like nothing I say will be enough.

There are so many things that this novel is about. Magic – black girl magic, black anger, the experience of growing up black in America, family, racial injustice, police brutality, etc. It’s incredibly hard to summarize in one review.

More than that, it’s hard to convey how it FEELS to read this novella. The language Onyebuchi uses creates such a rich atmosphere, it really pulls you in to the story. The New York specific slang in particular, it just makes the story feel even more visceral and real. I went through so many emotions while reading, from anger to sadness to despair to hope to amazement and everything in between. And the most important part is, I know what I felt is NOTHING compared to what Black Americans feel every single day living here, but this novel helps a little bit to understand.

I feel like this review is just me rambling haha. But ultimately, my takeaway is that I think it’s an important and worthwhile read, and you should all read it.