This collection of evocative and atmospheric stories packs a punch in its depiction of homophobia in Nigeria. Nine moving, insightful and empathetic tales about what it’s really like to be gay in a country where homosexuality is outlawed and widely condemned. Although firmly rooted in time and place, the stories naturally have a wider relevance and resonate well beyond the confines of Nigeria. I mostly enjoyed the collection, although found it somewhat repetitious, and the characters from story to story tended to merge into one another too quickly. I feel now that I shouldn’t have read the book in one go, but should have spaced out my reading. This, I feel, would have meant the stories would have had a greater impact on me, giving a bit of distance and time for reflection. However, overall it’s a fine debut collection and I would certainly read more from this author.

A deeply moving and emotional collection of short stories, each about queer men in Nigeria. The stories explore the idea of homosexual love in a homophobic country, and the impact of the discrimination the characters face. Each story is beautifully written and crafted, and radiates a feeling of authenticity. By turns heartbreaking and joyful, this is a collection to be savoured - highly recommended reading.

This has joined my favourite short story collectons, as it has such poetic writing focusing on the underrepresented voices around the world. Highly recommend!

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Orion Publishing Group, and the author Arinze Ifeakandu.
I found this slow going and struggled to keep reading. Important stories and experiences but there was something lacking in the pacing, format, and character development to make them engaging. 2 stars.

sobering and depressing i could not quite get into these stories. there was something about the pacing that kept me from finding them as poignant as they could have been,

Ifeakandu writes of queer male intimacy brimming with simmering secrecy, ecstasy, loneliness and love in their depictions of what it means to be gay in contemporary Nigeria in a simply exquisite collection of 9 short stories.

Reading these stories with an awareness that Nigeria is an intensely-homophobic country. Where same-sex relationships between men or women are illegal carrying a prison sentence of up to 14 years whilst in some areas - especially in the north where Ifeakandu was born - Sharia law has led to gay men being sentenced to death-by- stoning. I could sense the undercurrent of real fear and anxiety running through each one.

However even within this repression Ifeakandu’ stories depict love, heartbreak, lust, grief and so many different nuances of everyday life.

What I particularly liked is that whilst this book is about queer love that isn’t used as a gimmick. These are stories in which queerness is subtly explored within every day life, sometimes at the forefront sometimes less so but ever present and authentic.

Each piece in this collection is written with grace and tenderness, however as is often the case with a collection of short stories some resonate more strongly than others.

For me, Where the Heart Sleeps, a story in which a daughter returns to the home of her father after his death to face his lifelong partner was the standout story in this collection. I could provide all the superlatives for this piece but I will just say it is hands down the best thing I’ve ever read.

Highly recommend, this is a hugely talented author that I will be looking forward to reading more from.

Thank you to @netgalley and @orionbooks for this copy.

This deeply-felt, debut, story collection from Nigerian poet and writer Arinze Ifeakandu explores queer love and everyday, domestic life in modern-day Nigeria. Ifeakandu’s work reflects his personal experiences - his work originated in the need for a safe space to say what couldn’t easily be voiced out loud. Contemporary Nigeria’s an intensely-homophobic country: same-sex relationships between men or women are completely outlawed, while casual, widespread discrimination can suddenly and totally derail an individual’s life. In some areas - especially in the north where Ifeakandu was born - Sharia law has led to gay men being sentenced to death-by- stoning.

Ifeakandu’s characters are hemmed in by an array of repressive forces - laws that mean the briefest display of affection might lead to years in prison, near-fanatical forms of religion and superstition. It’s a world where even the sound of Christmas carols floating in through a window can create an atmosphere of fear. The characters in these stories have a very particular set of life skills, learning to dodge dating scams that might result in robbery or rape, working out what lies to tell their families and closest friends. They become expert at performing the narrow version of masculinity expected of them. Ifeakandu’s people are fragile, easily fractured, split between states of being: the young boy subjected to brutal rituals intended to rid him of the demons that’ve made him gay; the college professor faces ruin when his relationships with men are brought to light; the aging man who loses his lover and faces losing their home too.

Yet these are not unrelentingly-bleak narratives, Ifeakandu’s characters are vivid and sympathetic united by an unwavering belief in the transformative possibilities of love and requited desires. Despite their harsh environments, they willingly make themselves vulnerable, opening themselves up to moments of intense connection, intimacy and tenderness. They are rendered in carefully-crafted prose, Ifeakandu’s imagery’s sparse but frequently strangely beautiful, his landscapes and settings are impressively vivid and evocative. Like any collection, there are pieces that stand out like “Where the Heart Sleeps” with its poignant portrayal of grief, generational discord, and complicated family ties; others are slightly weaker, “Happy is a Doing Word” feels overly compressed, almost breathless, trying to cover too much ground in the limited space it occupies. Also, the ways in which certain themes or scenarios repeat or resurface to play out in different ways, I think, make this a collection best consumed slowly and in stages.

Lyrical and rich. There's something almost 'traditional' about these stories. They forgo any gimmicks or pyrotechnics and focus on the basic stuff of people facing real challenges and feeling real emotions.

What a wonderful book. A selection of stories with great characters all reflecting on contemporary LGBTQ+ love in modern Nigeria. The exotic setting made me pause. Was the author saying LGBTQ+ is a layer of exoticism? The language too? No. People are people where ever they are and I did enjoy the Nigerian slant on things. This delightful book is about the human condition and all relationships (just in the book they are LGTBQ+).
A book all should read

God's Children Are Little Broken Things, by the Nigerian writer Arinze Ifeakandu is a collection of short stories about gay life in a country in which it is forbidden. This alone gives this collection a subtext of very real fear which runs through each of these nine tales.

These stories are written in a variety of perspectives - and Ifeakandu was especially effective in his use of a second person narrative which can be very tricky to pull off well. Interspersed in the stories are Hausa saying, phrases and words, all of which add a lot of local colour to proceedings. The stories themselves were incredibly well written, often very moving and heartbreaking. I read all nine stories in one sitting, though afterwards I wished I taken my time and perhaps spread them out one a night. That said, with writing of this calibre, I suspect one day I will be drawn back into its covers. A great collection.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC.

God's Children Are Little Broken Things is a collection of short stories about queer men in Nigeria, telling stories of love and family, heartbreak and loss, and finding and leaving home. Many of the characters are young, navigating their place in contemporary life in Nigeria and dealing with messy love lives and complicated situations.

The stories are tender, exposing powerful emotions and everyday sadness across a variety of characters and situations, from navigating fame when gay to finding your relationship with your dead father's longterm partner. I enjoyed how vivid the characters and settings were, as often with short stories I don't feel like I know enough of what is going on and who is who, but throughout this collection I found myself deeply invested in the stories and like I was getting complete stories. The ordering worked well too, particularly the final story which I felt was a good ending to the collection and left it with a sense of hope.

Often heartbreaking but also sweet and intimate, this is a collection of stories to spend time with, enjoying moments of love stories and sadness, and complicated gay life.