An exhilarating and expansive new novel about fathers and sons, faith and friendship from National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree and Costa First Novel Award winning author Caleb Azumah NelsonOne of the most acclaimed and internationally bestselling "unforgettable" (New York Times) debuts of the 2021, Caleb Azumah Nelson's London-set love story Open Water took the US by storm and introduced the world to a salient and insightful new voice in fiction. Now, with his second novel Small Worlds, the prodigious Azumah Nelson brings another set of enduring characters to brilliant life in his signature rhythmic, melodic prose. Set over the course of three summers, Small Worlds follows Stephen, a first-generation Londoner born to Ghanian immigrant parents, brother to Ray, and best friend to Adeline. On the cusp of big life changes, Stephen feels pressured to follow a certain path--a university degree, a move out of home--but when he decides instead to follow his first love, music, his world and family fractures in ways he didn't foresee. Now Stephen must find a path and peace for himself: a space he can feel beautiful, a space he can feel free. Moving from London, England to Accra, Ghana and back again, Small Worlds is an exquisite and intimate new novel about the people and places we hold close, from one of the most "elegant, poetic" (CNN) and important voices of a generation.

WINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD 2021 WINNER OF DEBUT NOVEL OF THE YEAR AT THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS 2022 A No.1 BESTSELLER IN THE TIMES 'A tender and touching love story, beautifully told' Observer 'Hands-down the best debut I've read in years' The Times 'A beautiful and powerful novel about the true and sometimes painful depths of love' Candice Carty-Williams, bestselling author of QUEENIE 'An unforgettable debut... it's Sally Rooney meets Michaela Coel meets Teju Cole' New York Times 'A love song to Black art and thought' Yaa Gyasi, bestselling author of HOMEGOING and TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM Two young people meet at a pub in South East London. Both are Black British, both won scholarships to private schools where they struggled to belong, both are now artists - he a photographer, she a dancer - trying to make their mark in a city that by turns celebrates and rejects them. Tentatively, tenderly, they fall in love. But two people who seem destined to be together can still be torn apart by fear and violence. At once an achingly beautiful love story and a potent insight into race and masculinity, Open Water asks what it means to be a person in a world that sees you only as a Black body, to be vulnerable when you are only respected for strength, to find safety in love, only to lose it. With gorgeous, soulful intensity, Caleb Azumah Nelson has written the most essential British debut of recent years. 'An amazing debut novel. You should read this book. Let's hear it for Caleb Azumah Nelson, also known as the future' Benjamin Zephaniah 'A short, poetic and intellectual meditation on art and a relationship between a young couple' Bernardine Evaristo, author of GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER 'A very touching and heartfelt book' Diana Evans, award-winning author of ORDINARY PEOPLE 'A lyrical modern love story, brilliant on music and art, race and London life, I enjoyed it hugely' David Nicholls, author of ONE DAY and SWEET SORROW 'Caleb is a star in the making' Nikesh Shukla, editor of THE GOOD IMMIGRANT and BROWN BABY 'A stunning piece of art' Bolu Babalola, bestselling author of LOVE IN COLOUR 'For those that are missing the tentative depiction of love in Normal People, Caleb Azumah Nelson's Open Water is set to become one of 2021's unmissable books. Utterly transporting, it'll leave you weeping and in awe.' Stylist 'An exhilarating new voice in British fiction' Vogue 'A poetic novel about Black identity and first love in the capital from one of Britain's most exciting young voices' Harper's Bazaar 'An intense, elegant debut' Guardian WINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD WINNER OF DEBUT NOVEL OF THE YEAR AT THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS SHORTLISTED FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES YOUNG WRITER OF THE YEAR AWARD WINNER OF THE BAD FORM BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD SHORTLISTED FOR WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR LONGLISTED FOR THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE, THE DESMOND ELLIOTT PRIZE AND THE GORDON BURN PRIZE A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD '5 UNDER 35' HONOREE Pre-order Caleb Azumah Nelson's new novel SMALL WORLDS now

An exhilarating and expansive new novel about fathers and sons, faith and friendship from Caleb Azumah Nelson, the no.1 bestselling, award-winning author of Open Water - available for pre-order now 'Beautiful, unforgettable and all-consuming' CANDICE CARTY-WILLIAMS, bestselling author of QUEENIE and PEOPLE PERSON The one thing that can solve Stephen's problems is dancing. Dancing at Church, with his parents and brother, the shimmer of Black hands raised in praise; he might have lost his faith, but he does believe in rhythm. Dancing with his friends, somewhere in a basement with the drums about to drop, while the DJ spins garage cuts. Dancing with his band, making music which speaks not just to the hardships of their lives, but the joys too. Dancing with his best friend Adeline, two-stepping around the living room, crooning and grooving, so close their heads might touch. Dancing alone, at home, to his father's records, uncovering parts of a man he has never truly known. Stephen has only ever known himself in song. But what becomes of him when the music fades? When his father begins to speak of shame and sacrifice, when his home is no longer his own? How will he find space for himself: a place where he can feel beautiful, a place he might feel free? Set over the course of three summers in Stephen's life, from London to Ghana and back again, Small Worlds is an exhilarating and expansive novel about the worlds we build for ourselves, the worlds we live, dance and love within. 'The rhythms of SMALL WORLDS are a feature of Azumah Nelson's quiet, particular ear and of a profound engagement with music. Nelson writes about closeness, with family, with lovers, with art, as careful, essential labour' RAVEN LEILANI, award-winning author of LUSTER "In his beautiful new novel Nelson summons the sounds of Black Youth, love and discovery to the page. A celebration of the heart' NANA KWAME ADJEI-BRENYAH, author of CHAIN-GANG ALL-STARS and FRIDAY BLACK 'Caleb Azumah Nelson's writing is touching, heartfelt, and musically rich' DIANA EVANS 'SMALL WORLDS is a miracle of observation, of attention and attunement. Caleb Azumah Nelson writes prose that is unmatched in its musicality and sensitivity. A gorgeous, rhapsodic, wise novel.' KATIE KITAMURA, author of INTIMACIES 'A beautiful novel' YOMI SODE, author of MANORISM 'A wonderful, dexterous work. Caleb Azumah Nelson explores modes of blackness in ways that are enriching and invigorating' IRENOSEN OKOJIE 'SMALL WORLDS grabs you by the heart and holds tightly, revealing a story as beautiful and as lyrical as the words that adorn the pages' SOFIA AKEL "Caleb Azumah Nelson's writing captures nostalgia-that most essential of sentiments-like no other. I was immersed, transported, and at the same time affirmed in the familiar. Gorgeous' Sareeta Domingo, author of THE THREE OF US

WINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD A NATIONAL BOOK FOUNDATION 5 UNDER 35 WINNER OF THE BRITISH BOOK AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTIONA stunning first novel about two young Black artists in London falling in and out of love by a new literary virtuoso and finalist for the BBC Short Story Award, twenty-six-year-old writer and photographer Caleb Azumah Nelson "Open Water is tender poetry, a love song to Black art and thought, an exploration of intimacy and vulnerability between two young artists learning to be soft with each other in a world that hardens against Black people." --Yaa Gyasi, author of Homegoing In a crowded London pub, two young people meet. Both are Black British, both won scholarships to private schools where they struggled to belong, both are now artists--he a photographer, she a dancer--and both are trying to make their mark in a world that by turns celebrates and rejects them. Tentatively, tenderly, they fall in love. But two people who seem destined to be together can still be torn apart by fear and violence, and over the course of a year they find their relationship tested by forces beyond their control. Narrated with deep intimacy, Open Water is at once an achingly beautiful love story and a potent insight into race and masculinity that asks what it means to be a person in a world that sees you only as a Black body; to be vulnerable when you are only respected for strength; to find safety in love, only to lose it. With gorgeous, soulful intensity, and blistering emotional intelligence, Caleb Azumah Nelson gives a profoundly sensitive portrait of romantic love in all its feverish waves and comforting beauty. This is one of the most essential debut novels of recent years, heralding the arrival of a stellar and prodigious young talent.

Celebrated for his compelling lyrical films and video art installations, Isaac Julien is one of the leading artists working today. This landmark book reveals the scope of Julien’s pioneering practice of over forty years, from the early 1980s to the present day, showcasing works from early films to large-scale, multi-screen installations which investigate the movement of peoples across different continents, times and spaces. It includes some of his early projects as part of Sankofa Film and Video Collective (1983–92); his critically acclaimed ten-screen video installation Lessons of the Hour 2019, a portrait of the life and times of Frederick Douglass, the visionary African American orator, philosopher and self-liberated freedom-fighter; and Once Again … (Statues Never Die) 2022. The wide range of writers and collaborators who have contributed to this book highlight Julien's critical thinking and the way his work breaks down barriers between different artistic disciplines, drawing from film, dance, photography, music, theatre, painting and sculpture by using the themes of desire, history and culture. Featuring strikingly beautiful reproductions of these extraordinarily powerful works, this publication enriches our understanding and appreciation of a remarkable artist.

‘Dance, theatre, music, sculpture, painting, all of these different modes of art-making are encapsulated into my practice, which is why I chose film as a medium for making my work.’ Isaac Julien Celebrated for his compelling lyrical films and video art installations, Isaac Julien is one of the leading artists working today. This landmark book reveals the scope of Julien’s pioneering practice of over forty years, from the early 1980s to the present day, showcasing works from early films to large-scale, multi-screen installations which investigate the movement of peoples across different continents, times and spaces. It includes some of his early projects as part of Sankofa Film and Video Collective (1983–92); his critically acclaimed ten-screen film installation Lessons of the Hour 2019, a portrait of the life and times of Frederick Douglass, the visionary African American orator, philosopher and self-liberated freedom-fighter; and Once Again … (Statues Never Die) 2022. The wide range of writers and collaborators who have contributed to this book highlight Julien's critical thinking and the way his work breaks down barriers between different artistic disciplines, drawing from film, dance, photography, music, theatre, painting and sculpture by using the themes of desire, history and culture. Featuring strikingly beautiful reproductions of these extraordinarily powerful works, this publication enriches our understanding and appreciation of a remarkable artist.