I recently reviewed Black Volta by Pete KJ for the Independent Book Review website. Generally, I reviews speculative fiction, like Repo Shark, 100 Ghost Soup, and Nightjar: Genre fiction is my main interest. Yet, I am an English major, after all. I can do Literature and have blogged about All The Castles Burned and Last Days of New Paris. Black Volta by Pete KJ is also a literary novel. The reader journeys along with the characters, meandering like the Black Volta River itself through memory of past trauma and hopes for a brighter future. 

Black Volta’s Story

Black Volta is a contemporary story of two people from the United States, each at a crucial turning point in their lives. Carlos, a successful businessman, seems to be in a midlife crisis. Divorced and with his sons off to college, he’s quit his job and spends his time surfing and worrying over troubling events from his youth. He’s carried the emotional baggage of those bad decisions long enough. A trip to Ghana, the site of the long-ago disaster, might give him the catharsis he needs. Liz, born in Ghana, is a busy hospital administrator in Pittsburgh. But she has another full-time job—long-distance manager for her siblings day-to-day affairs—back in Ghana. Construction of a new family home for her sister and brother is not just behind schedule, but also at a crisis point that only on-site supervision from Liz can solve. 

And so, both protagonists embark on their respective journeys: across continents, into the past, and through relationships. Each has a concrete goal, but under the surface each really just wants to make sense of their lives so they can move forward. Carlos seeks absolution and forgiveness, while Liz craves liberation and self-actualization. 

Travel Through Reading

Black Volta is a beautifully written and entertaining book: descriptions were detailed, clear, and fascinating throughout. The detailed descriptions of Puerto Rico, Ghana, and Vietnam (all places I’ve never visited!) drops the reader straight into the setting, and the insights into the immigrant experience were eye-opening. I enjoyed seeing Carlos and Liz’s paths cross several times before they finally meet and aid each other on their respective journeys. All the characters felt real and their motives and actions believable, generally. 

At around 450 pages, the novel could have been tighter, but I always found the story engrossing, even as the characters move through the mundane details of their lives. It was one of those “I’ll just read one more chapter” books. Carlos is quite complex, and, at times, tricky to peg. I wasn’t totally convinced of the motive for his youthful, life-altering action, but my skepticism didn’t ultimately mar the story overall.

Recommendation

I’d recommend Black Volta to readers who enjoy learning about new locales as they read fiction, as well as those who enjoy watching likeable, flawed humans as they travel through life. 

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