9780062798961
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Speak No Evil audiobook

  • By: Uzodinma Iweala
  • Narrator: Prentice Onayemi
  • Length: 6 hours 21 minutes
  • Publisher: HarperAudio
  • Publish date: March 06, 2018
  • Language: English
  • (6295 ratings)
(6295 ratings)
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Speak No Evil Audiobook Summary

In the long-anticipated novel from the author of the critically acclaimed Beasts of No Nation, a revelation shared between two privileged teenagers from very different backgrounds sets off a chain of events with devastating consequences.

On the surface, Niru leads a charmed life. Raised by two attentive parents in Washington, D.C., he’s a top student and a track star at his prestigious private high school. Bound for Harvard in the fall, his prospects are bright. But Niru has a painful secret: he is queer–an abominable sin to his conservative Nigerian parents. No one knows except Meredith, his best friend, the daughter of prominent Washington insiders–and the one person who seems not to judge him.

When his father accidentally discovers Niru is gay, the fallout is brutal and swift. Coping with troubles of her own, however, Meredith finds that she has little left emotionally to offer him. As the two friends struggle to reconcile their desires against the expectations and institutions that seek to define them, they find themselves speeding toward a future more violent and senseless than they can imagine. Neither will escape unscathed.

In the tradition of Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah, Speak No Evil explores what it means to be different in a fundamentally conformist society and how that difference plays out in our inner and outer struggles. It is a novel about the power of words and self-identification, about who gets to speak and who has the power to speak for other people. As heart-wrenching and timely as his breakout debut, Beasts of No Nation, Uzodinma Iweala’s second novel cuts to the core of our humanity and leaves us reeling in its wake.

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Speak No Evil Audiobook Narrator

Prentice Onayemi is the narrator of Speak No Evil audiobook that was written by Uzodinma Iweala

Uzodinma Iweala received the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award, and the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, all for Beasts of No Nation. He was also selected as one of Granta’s Best Young American Novelists. A graduate of Harvard University and the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, he lives in New York City and Lagos, Nigeria.

About the Author(s) of Speak No Evil

Uzodinma Iweala is the author of Speak No Evil

More From the Same

Speak No Evil Full Details

Narrator Prentice Onayemi
Length 6 hours 21 minutes
Author Uzodinma Iweala
Publisher HarperAudio
Release date March 06, 2018
ISBN 9780062798961

Additional info

The publisher of the Speak No Evil is HarperAudio. The imprint is HarperAudio. It is supplied by HarperAudio. The ISBN-13 is 9780062798961.

Global Availability

This book is only available in the United States.

Goodreads Reviews

Jessica

February 17, 2018

I should start by saying that this is a book with queer suffering front and center. I have more to say later about that, but I want to get it up front. I know there are many other readers, like me, who need to ration out stories of queer suffering. I started this book months ago and had to put it down, always knowing I'd come back to it, but needing to be in a place where it would be easier for me to digest. This is a lovely book and a difficult one. Niru is not a character we see often. He is upper class, the child of Nigerian immigrants, raised in a conservative Christian faith, a quiet kid in a nice school. Through the book he comes to terms with his own sexual identity and struggles with how to be himself when his family will not allow him to exist as that person. There is a light on the horizon, college just a year away, but for Niru it is impossible to fully imagine his life away from his parents.Iweala's prose is delicate, tender, and lyrical. It is a book that ebbs and flows, that doesn't feel bound to traditional structures or styles. The book is notably, purposefully uneven and I'm still not sure what to make of it. It takes a turn near the end, not just in plot but in voice and tone and everything else. It was hard to read the last section of the book, especially since I felt I'd just found a groove with it. But Iweala knows what he's doing and it's up to us to take what he presents us and examine the new set of questions that arise from this last section of the book. What do we owe each other? How do we redefine ourselves after trauma? As for the place of queer suffering in fiction, we definitely still need it. There is this growing idea among allies that queerness is no longer punished, that it is no longer difficult, that everyone can just happily come out and be out. Queer people know this is not true and it's important to show the ongoing difficulty of queer experience, especially since I suspect many will react to this book by saying its depiction of queer suffering is extreme and unrealistic (it's not). On the other hand, so few queer stories are published and so many of the ones that do make it into book form are about queer suffering that it can feel like all queer reading is designed to hurt you, that these are the only stories we have. It is not the fault of these books, as I've said these stories need to be told. It is the fault of a larger world that still doesn't know how to tell other stories. (The same world in which Octavia Spencer keeps getting cast as a maid or as a suffering woman in the 60's.) We need a lot more queer literature, and that doesn't just mean more sassy gay best friends and well-off cis gay white men. Ideally stories of queer suffering exist in literature as just one segment of a deep well of queer experiences, but we're not there yet. I'm glad we have this book to add to queer literature, it helps present a picture of queerness, and specifically black queerness, that is still underrepresented. It continues my 2018 streak of highly intersectional reading, a trend I hope continues through the year.

Elyse

June 25, 2018

When you’re gay.. you can walk down the street and not particularly stand out.When you’re black, what you are, is seen on the outside. Being black, Gay, with roots from Nigeria is a challenging birth card. Being born a white heterosexual affluent woman - its easy to play a role in the violence thrust upon black men. Frightening! To me - this is a community book worth talking about. I don’t think it matters how much we like it.....pimples - flaws - it’s worth reading. Gut-wrenching...devastating.Too emotional-‘maddening’-to be boring.

Thomas

June 07, 2019

A sparse novel that tore through my heart in the best way possible, Speak No Evil feels like a grittier, darker version of The Hate U Give and a more modern, intersectional queer coming of age story than Call Me By Your Name. At first I felt distanced from our protagonist Niru, a gay Nigerian Harvard-bound high school senior who has only disclosed his sexuality to his best friend Meredith. But as the book went on the emotions elicited by the narrative - Niru's pain and longing and shame - won me over. Uzodinma Iweala covers a lot of painful ground with Niru's identity, whether his conservative parents try to force the gay out of him or his classmates joke and microagress him about the size of his genitalia. We need more books like Speak No Evil with characters like Niru, who embody multiple underrepresented identities and give voice to the hurt that emerges from when racism, homophobia, and more collide.Iweala's writing in scenes of high emotional intensity elevated this to a five star novel for me. A scene early on in the novel when Niru's father finds out about Niru's sexuality and attacks Niru made my heart race - the description of Niru's father's hands choking him and Niru trying to talk to his father through his tears got me all wound up. Iweala captures rich emotions in quite a few scenes throughout the book, like when Niru experiences his first gay kiss and the sparks fly. I felt so impressed by how Iweala captured longing and physical craving within Niru and with Niru and his flame. While some critics describe this novel as less polished than Iweala's other work, the book's lack of pretense and its rawness made it even more moving for me, in particular given our protagonist's young age.Overall, an important novel that I hope will go more noticed, both in the queer community and in communities of color. Not gonna lie, I put off reading this and kinda wanted to dislike it because the author reminds me of my most recent crush who I need to stop alluding to in my online postings, lol. But, by the end of Speak No Evil, I developed a slight crush on Iweala (sigh) for his ability to express emotions through his characters, his accomplishments, and his earnest acknowledgements section in this book. I will say that I wish Niru and Meredith's friendship had gone deeper, perhaps even with more flashbacks or other scenes that highlighted why they felt so close to one another. Still, I loved the centrality of friendship, race, gender, and sexuality in this novel and I look forward to more from Iweala.

da

August 13, 2018

What's it like to be a teenager who's grown up amid the complicated push-pull of being privileged, American, Nigerian, and gay? Along with Niru, author Iweala does a remarkable job of illustrating characters, each of them good and bad, each of them representative of how mere good intentions are not enough. Audiobook narrators Onayem and Whelan are equally amazing.

Read RodKelly

October 08, 2019

I can say with no reservation that this book is going to be in my top five for the year!Speak No Evil is a beautiful, heart-breaking storm of a novel that brilliantly weaves two powerful and painful narrative threads together. At the heart of the novel is the struggle of Niru, the 18 year old son of upper-class, highly religious African parents, to deal with his recently revealed homosexuality. After a gutpunch of a twist that I won't reveal, the latter half of the novel is told from the POV of Meredith, Niru's close friend who tries to help him along, but fails in the most earth-shattering, irreconcilable way. It's true that Iweala tells a familiar tale with this novel, but he is able to conjure up such raw, palpable, emotional power that I was left almost gasping for air when I finished. It's a short novel that proves big books aren't always about page counts. I'm spent.

MaryBeth's

March 26, 2018

Speak No Evil left me gutted, speechless, and heartbroken.This is a coming of age novel told from two perspectives. First, Niru, a young Nigerian man with a privileged upbringing and extremely strict parents. When Niru's father discovers that he is gay, he takes Niru back to Nigeria to "cleanse him" of this evil. Meredith is Niru's best friend, with emotional struggles of her own. Meredith also comes from a family of privilege, where appearances are everything. One night at a party one mistake leads to devastating consequences for them both.The writing in this novel is exquisite and I was shocked and horrified by the ending. Iweala has woven an intricate and complicated story that will leave the reader reeling for days.

Barbara

May 23, 2018

“Speak No Evil” by Uzodinma Iweala is a novel that encompasses many themes. Narrator Niru is a first generation Nigerian immigrant who is struggling with his sexuality. His parents are wealthy and he attends a prominent private school. As the story opens, Niru has already been accepted into Harvard on early admission. Niru is a track star, he’s a perfect student, he’s a kid who wants his parents affection. Yet his Christian conservative father is always pushing him to be better, never providing Niru with the support he wants. Author Iweala shows the generational differences of success. He also shows how black immigrants need to be far better to get ahead. Niru’s father constantly reminds Niru that he cannot slide and behave like a white kid.When Niru’s father finds out that Niru is gay, he is aghast and takes him back to Nigeria to be “fixed”. As Niru fights his own sexuality, he struggles with his identity and his need for his father’s approval. The novel becomes a coming-of-age story of a black immigrant boy who is coming to terms with his gayness/sexuality.The story comes to a dramatic climax that I didn’t see coming. It’s heart wrenching. This is a short novel, and one that packs an emotional punch. Niru will stay with me for a long time.

Kate

May 31, 2018

ALL THE STARS and officially on my Best of 2018 list. Brief, searing and intensely readable, I must insist that every. single. one. of you read. this. book. I picked it up at lunch one day to try to at least get a start on it for the May @words.between.worlds (Instagram) discussion and finished it at 6 am the next day while walking the dogs. Because I couldn’t stop, even though I wanted the pain of the narrative to stop. If that makes sense? (NOTE: this may be about teens but it is NOT a YA book. At all.)

Alice

April 30, 2020

Gorgeously written and really emotional.

Nikki

August 02, 2018

I have been on an audiobook roll lately and hope to keep up the momentum. I am one who prefers to read an actual book, but likes to listen to audiobooks during my drives (or to make doing chores more bearable). There have been a few times where I felt that I had a better experience listening rather than reading and this here is one of them!Narrator Prentice Onayemi starts the first part of this book and he was absolute perfection. I felt as though I was listening to Prentice – as Niru – tell me his story; as if I was grabbing coffee with him and we were engaged in a conversation. He made Niru real, lent a voice to his story and his family. My goodness was this story beautifully written: there is no doubt that author Iweala is extremely talented. Niru and Meredith are best friends, both living in wealthy neighborhoods, both with parents that do not understand them; but one set is absent and the other overbearing. Both teenagers crave acceptance and feeling, it will be their unraveling.After Niru tells Meredith he is gay, his quiet internal life becomes quiet externally as well. He is angry, sad, alone. His religious, homophobic father will find out and Niru will blame Meredith, causing Niru to lose his only person in this world – now more alone and misunderstood than ever.When the audiobook cuts to Part II: ‘Meredith’ about ¾ of the way through I was confused and actually scared. The events that will happen are not what I expected; goodness did it knock me off my axis a bit. You will not be able to stop and pause without listening to the last 1.5 hours – you just can’t.If you are in the market for an audiobook, want to try an audiobook, heck even if you don’t like audiobooks – I recommend you give this one a go. Narrator Prentice Onayemi will win you over in less than 1 minute.

Dan

February 25, 2018

This slim volume packs a wallop. It's a moving gay coming-of-age story, a story about the ups and downs of close friendships, a look at contemporary racial and gender politics, and a beautiful exploration of the sacrifices we all make to fit into our communities—whatever those may be. Of the two parts, I was partial to Meredith's. That's where, for me, the book took on a larger significance. Of the two voices, though, I preferred Niru's. *Spoilers Ahead* Niru's section initially left me feeling like I'd read it before. I thought, oh, here we go, another story about being gay in a conservative family, but then after reading Meredith's section I looked at it in a different light. Iweala's book masquerades as a gay coming-of-age story but is really about violence against young black men. Looking at it that way, I thought it was a pretty clever way to talk about a lot of different things at once. And having the shooting and the aftermath come from Meredith allowed us access to an angle that doesn't get a lot of play. It allowed for a lot of complicated emotions and even redeemed the father's character in a way that I don't think would've been possible had the story not made the pivot it did. Overall, a speedy, gripping read. If you liked this, make sure to follow me on Goodreads for more reviews!

BookOfCinz

June 14, 2018

WOW. I finished this book and I sat staring in space for a good 20mins. I could do nothing else except mediate on what I just read. This is a solid 5 star, must read book. I am absolutely astounding as to how such a short story packs an unbelievable punch. This book tackles so many issues in the short amount of pages and does it in the most beautiful way. Set in Washington D.C., "Speak No Evil" is about Niru, an overachieving young man to two wealthy Nigerian parents. Niru's got it all, he is a star athlete, on his way to Harvard and by all means, his future is bright, except he is struggling with letting everyone around him know his is gay, especially his parents. His best friends Meredith knows his secret and doesn't judge him for it. However, when Niru's father finds out he is gay, everything went downhill....fast.I could write a book on how gorgeous Iweala prose is but I am not a writer. I felt this book in my core. I was left wanting, there needs to be a follow up novel to this. While this novel is short in pages, it is long in heartache. A must read for me.

Darryl

June 21, 2020

3.5 stars // This book did something I wish it didn't do. Although Part 2 is well written and devastating, this section is about a totally different subject matter. Several themes from Part 1 get cast aside; never to be explored again. Speak No Evil is a compelling novel, but I had some issues.

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