Teju Cole‘s Open City (2012) is one of the finest written contemporary novels you’ll encounter. It tells the story of Julius, a Nigerian graduate student in psychiatry living in New York City.
It’s a classic intellectual novel: Julius wanders the city, meeting people, thinking deeply about art and philosophy and life. There is a love interest, and there are challenges in his career, and there is, quite memorably, a random incident of violence that punctures the internal existence that dominates most of Julius’ time.
Little happens, but the musings make the trip memorable and fascinating, and in this, Open City sits at the intersection of two traditions: first, the displacement, isolation, and loss of agency inherent in being an immigrant and, second, novels which sparkle with the intelligence of the narrator, where their intellectual concerns are communicated in a way that sparks and holds the reader’s interest.
Race and class are both treated with some complexity: Julius is black in New York City, a position that marks his travels in the city; but he is also privileged, and studying for a comfortable professional career.
It’s an excellent book, and one that deserves its various accolades and awards (Pen-Hemingway winner, finalist for the National Book Critics Circle, etc.). It’s not a page turner but it’s well worth the time and thought it demands.
#WhatIWishICouldDo
Be comfortable weaving intellectual discourse into my fiction. When it’s pulled off, it’s such a pleasure to read, combining a deepening understanding of the character with musings that are interesting in their own right. Cole does it excellently.