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121 reviews

Damali

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The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

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Damali is Currently Reading

Damali is currently reading

The Tainted Cup (Shadow of the Leviathan, #1)

by Robert Jackson Bennett (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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(55%)
— Jul 03, 2026 07:56PM

Jul 03, 2026 07:56PM

Damali is currently reading

Open Water

by Caleb Azumah Nelson

bookshelves: 5-stars, currently-reading

Reading for the 2nd time

read in May 2022

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Damali said: "

"To be you is to apologize and often that apology comes in the form of suppression. That suppression is indiscriminate. That suppression knows not when it will spill. What you’re trying to say is that it’s easier for you to hide in your own darkness,

"To be you is to apologize and often that apology comes in the form of suppression. That suppression is indiscriminate. That suppression knows not when it will spill. What you’re trying to say is that it’s easier for you to hide in your own darkness, than emerge cloaked in your own vulnerability. Not better, but easier. However, the longer you hold it in, the more likely you are to suffocate. At some point, you must breathe."

Open Water follows the love story of two black artists (one a dancer, the other a photographer) in London as they experience the beauty with being seen for who you truly are. Told entirely in 2nd person, Azumah paints a vivid and personal picture of an easy friendship built on the black British experience developing into an intimate relationship where the need for vulnerability and trust is both freeing and terrifying. Although this love is the foundation of the novel, it is also offset by scenes where a lack of love and understanding can be debilitating – like the narrator viewing/experience racial profiling by police or the toll that everyday racism plays on emotional/mental wellness.

I’ve been really slow to write this review because I’m not entirely sure if I’ve fully processed it all. Although it’s only ~160 pages, it is by no means a quick read. Azumah is tedious in his analysis and expertly breaks down the black experience in a way that constantly had me rereading lines and reflecting. Putting the right words to match feelings is something I struggle with, and I was incredibly grateful that Azumah was able to verbalize my own emotions so clearly. The ONLY reason docked it .5 stars because of my own struggle with the 2nd person POV (but obviously I got used to it) & I felt like the middle of the story tended to lag a bit, or I at least felt the lack of plot more.

Since I’m still struggling to collect my thoughts, here are some random ones 😊:

The writing! Was! So! Good! The prose struck the right balance of being poetic without being too confusing or long-winded. The entire book felt like a song; the short and long phrases building a rhythm that was exciting to read.

Music is always juxtaposed with unabashed black joy in this book. A scene in a club can seem deceptively straightforward, but every beat, every stomp, every step taken in dance is described as an opportunity to feel true freedom in expression.

Quote of the Book Award Goes To:“You know that to love is both to swim and to drown. You know to love is to be a whole, partial, a joint, a fracture, a heart, a bone. It is to bleed and heal. It is to be in the world, honest. It is to place someone next to your beating heart, in the absolute darkness of your inner, and trust they will hold you close. To love is to trust, to trust is to have faith. How else are you meant to love?”

As much as I loved this book, it definitely isn’t for anyone. It’s purely a character-driven (or honestly idea-driven) book written in a poetic prose that might feel too flowery for some. ...more "

progress:

(page 40 of 145)
"Rereading my foundational texts!" — May 26, 2026 06:36PM

May 26, 2026 06:36PM · see review

Damali’s Quotes

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

tags: love

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