Books book reviews Akwaeke Emezi’s Much Anticipated Return to Young Adult with Somadina Absolutely Delivers In a magical West African world, a teen girl must save her missing twin while learning to navigate her own terrifying new powers. By Helen Rhee | Published on July 23, 2025 Comment 0 Share New Share Sọmadịna and her twin brother, Jaiyeki, have always known they were different. Sharing a connection in mind and spirit—even in a village full of people endowed with magical abilities—was a bond unfathomable to many. This difference shields them from the glares and whispers of the villagers and even at times from their own mother, who has grown more distant with the departure of their older sister, Nkadi. But when their magic finally manifests, they learn that this difference was not just in their bond, but in their immense power.  To understand their power, we must understand where they come from. Before the twins were born, war ravaged their land. Water and livestock were poisoned by their enemies and many people starved to death. To save their people from the Starvation War, the dịbịas—spiritual healers and intermediaries to the gods with multiple magical abilities—decided to create the “Split” and break the earth open to separate themselves from their enemies. But breaking the earth, one of the deity’s bodies, has a price. Ala forced her magic onto everyone left standing; if the magic was too much to bear they would die, leaving only those able to withstand and hold onto the power of a deity. After the Split, everyone in the village was born with a special power, a “gift” from Ala. For the rare few that were born with more than one magical ability, they left home to train as a dịbịa, just as Nkadi did. But Sọmadịna and Jaiyeki belonged to Ala. They were little gods. When their powers manifested together, Sọmadịna realized their gifts were as opposite as they could be. Jaiyeki’s was full of life and light; hers was death and destruction. At this realization, Sọmadịna feels a growing distance between her and Jaiyeki. It’s disorienting and frightening, and her fear only grows as a hunter in blue begins to appear in her dreams. She does not know who he is, but she knows that he is evil. Sensing and craving their power, a hunter kidnaps Jaiyeki. Sọmadịna finds herself alone for the first time of her life. Agonized by this separation and with unwavering conviction, she sets off to find her brother with Nkadi, her older sister turned dịbịa, and Ụwafụlamiro, her and Jaiyeki’s childhood best friend. As Sọmadịna, our complicated “abomination” of a heroine, embarks on a hero’s journey to save her brother, she also begins her journey of self-discovery. We witness her face rejection from her own people, including her mother, and how it deeply affects her self-worth and identity. To feel unsafe and unwanted in the place you were born, the place of your people and ancestors, can not only be isolating, but incredibly painful—a feeling Emezi knows well as an openly queer and trans person. Through Sọmadịna, they explore this pain and trauma, as well as the resilience and strength that emerges. She alone holds the power to destroy and she alone has the strength to wield it, to fight against it, to use it… for good. And it is in her darkness that Sọmadịna finds her strength.  Buy the Book Somadina Akwaeke Emezi Buy Book Somadina Akwaeke Emezi Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleiBooksIndieBoundTarget Emezi once again shows their mastery at exploring identity and the intricate layers within it through Igbo culture, history, and spirituality. Navigating between the physical world of forests with springs of clear water and a river filled with crocodiles, to the spiritual one which holds a terrible power that feels like a “gourd full of ashes” and “maggots crawling out of muddy gold eyes,” the world Emezi builds is vibrant, beautiful, but also perilous. In this world, magic not only exists but it is an integral part of life. However, while magic is embedded in the everyday fabric of the community, this does not make it an understanding one. There is still a bias and discrimination against any magic that falls outside of the norm. Even the dịbịas, a fundamental but rare pillar of society, are exiled to the Sacred Forest for their training and service. They are revered, but they are also feared. Speaking to the gods is not for the faint of heart, nor is it possible for the common man. With a traumatic history of the Split and their refusal to speak about it, it is understandable that fear runs deep in this village and that they fear the little gods, the “abominations”. Inspired by the Biafran Genocide (or the Biafran war, depending on who you talk to), the mass starvation of Nigerian civilians it caused, and the code of silence that was mandated by the government, the Split is a fantastical reimagining of what would’ve happened if the Biafrans successfully seceded from Nigeria. It would have resulted in a separation, but not without violence, trauma, and pain that would last generations. This political and historical backdrop is important to note when reading Sọmadịna because it provides context to the mindset and behavior of Sọmadịna and her people. The village’s refusal to speak about the past may have numbed their pain, but the wound is deep. We see how the reverberations of that trauma are felt for generations, but we also see how wounds, both collective and personal, can start to heal. Generational curses can be broken and trust can be rebuilt.  Sọmadịna is a young adult fantasy, but the message is universal. It is a novel that can and should be read by anyone who has ever felt different, rejected, and broken in their life—a novel that will remind you that you don’t have to be perfect or whole or good to matter. In the end, Emezi shows us that there is no light without the dark, and that there is darkness in all of us. And because of it, because of the dark, broken things we hold inside, we absolutely deserve to feel safe, seen, and loved.[end-mark] Somadina is published by Knopf Books for Young Readers. The post Akwaeke Emezi’s Much Anticipated Return to Young Adult with <i>Somadina</i> Absolutely Delivers appeared first on Reactor.