This book uses the development of a very toxic, “romantic” relationship as a device to discuss the nuances of otherness, the Economic North vs the Economic South, how lines between race and class can blur into nothing, and the role of the female within the patriarchy. Naga does a masterful job of blurring the line between class and racism; the entire book highlights how racial lines shift internationally and how it’s not as clear cut as “black against white” as it may be perceived in Western areas. This book made me question myself, and made me ask myself why I was so quick to align all aspects of privilege with whiteness despite there being no white people of import in this novel. I love a book that challenges me, that exposes my own biases.

I really enjoyed the form of this book—the flipping between narratives and the rhetorical questions created a very conversational book, which was only solidified by the way Naga chose to write Part 3. This is definitely a book I’ll need to read again, though, because it’s short but complex and I’m sure I’ve missed something.