Commentary: Pet by Akwaeke Emezi
"We are each other's harvest. We are each other's business. We are each other's magnitude and bond."
Lauralei’s Instagram @rebelmouthedbooks: https://www.instagram.com/p/B-F9UfCgyCn/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Pet is a YA novel written by Akwaeke Emezi (the same author who brought you Freshwater) about Jam, a young girl who is faced with a life-changing realization: Her peaceful hometown of Lucille still has monsters, even after the angels led a revolution against them and built a liberated society. A mysterious creature emerges from Jam's mother's art, revealing pieces of the past that Jam never experienced, while also pointing to a piece of the present that no one expected; there is a monster in Jam's best friend's home. Jam and the creature, who Jam calls Pet, are the only ones who can stop the harm and get rid of the monster. But who is the monster?
There is a lot to love about this book. Emezi's writing is savory and alive with detail, flexing a brilliance in style that, in a YA novel, feels unexpected. The relationship between Jam and the rest of her world is filled with flavor -- "world-building" doesn't seem to give it justice. Emezi brings possibility, newness, and shine to the mundane every day AND to the unknown future, breeding ideas about liberated futures in young minds hungry for it. But my favorite thing about this book was that our main character, Jam, signs.
I've been on the hunt lately for books written by and/or about Deaf and HOH characters, or any character who signs to communicate. Jam is not Deaf or HOH. She signs because she wants to and chooses to. She voices (or speaks out loud) sometimes, and more as the story progresses and the drama intensifies, but the culture of signing is present and alive in her relationships with other characters. The reason I've been looking for these books is two-fold:
1) Signing is beautiful and I want it to be more present than it is in the stories I read and
2) I'm curious about how writers translate the experience onto the page -- how they honor the storytelling inherent in signing. Books with Deaf and HOH characters or with signing at the forefront are hard to come by, especially ones done well. Finding Pet felt so fortunate, special, and beautiful.
I'm a hearing person; I'm not Deaf or HOH. I am currently learning ASL, but I am by no means fluent, nor am I an expert in Deaf culture, though I am learning. All this to say: My opinion on this subject should not be taken as gospel. Listen to Deaf and HOH folks about which books get signing "right." All I am here to do is to comment on what I see from my perspective. From my hearing perspective, I loved so much about how Emezi captured signing. The little details added up into a meaningful whole. For example, how Jam taps people's shoulders or on a nearby surface to get their attention. Or how other characters in Jam's life choose to learn sign language to communicate with her. Or how, in a moment of regret, you can feel Jam's apology when she signs, perhaps more so than you can feel the authenticity in a vocalized apology. Or even the simplicity of Jam dusting the crumbs off of her fingers at breakfast before signing to her parents. I loved every moment.
After finishing Pet, I started drafting a full-length blog piece exploring in-depth how different writers navigate signing characters in their books, with Deaf and HOH characters in the majority. If you are interested in reading this, keep an eye out over the next few months.