Before We Hit The Ground by Selali Fiamanya

‘You can choose to mourn our son in the place where he died. I need to remember him in a place where I can live.’

Elom is a lost soul. He’s in the midst of trying to find himself, whilst trying to achieve this journey to his idea of self, he attempts to live his life authentically. But when you feel displaced & misunderstood by others, is it possible to gain a sense of identity? Set between Ghana & Glasgow, Before We Hit The Ground highlights the rawness of such a journey to ‘self’.

This was a gorgeously written novel. Despite the synopsis indicating that this story would solely be about Elom, I was pleasantly surprised to be presented with a multi-pov narrative. This included Elom's mother, father & sister. I personally could have done without the sisters pov, it felt limited, but, the parents povs - WHEW! Those pov's hit my readers spot.

Parenting was a key theme explored within this novel. As a parent myself, I thought that the depiction of Elom's parents was perfectly flawed. As a parent you will NEVER get it ALL right. It is a journey of constant ebbs & flows. It also showcased that sometimes you parent from a place of missed opportunities & lived experiences, that while they come from a place of love, this love can metamorphose into pain for the recipients, I.e. Elom.

I appreciated Elom’s story, but at times I struggled to understand exactly what the root cause of his issues were. His parents chapters stole the show for me, maybe because there was more clarity and definition of their issues.

I also liked the inclusion of sexuality in this story… However, I was left a bit concerned around the subject of consent. This is the 2nd book that i’ve read which features a gay relationship with grey areas in respect of consent.

Overall, I did really enjoy this book! It was raw, heartfelt + honest. I cant wait to read more from this author in the future.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.95