A Broken People's Playlist - A Book Inspired by Music

I've read books, a lot of them; books authored by Africans, Americans, Asians, from all races too, blacks, whites, Latinos. When rating books, I judge based on how gripping the storytelling is, excellent character development and most of all, how the book made me feel. If I still think of the characters days after I finished reading a book, then it's excellent. And because A Broken People's Playlist made me feel this way, it's one of my favourite books of all time.

A Broken People's Playlist

A Broken People's Playlist is a collection of twelve short stories inspired by music. I'm not a fan of short stories because they always feel incomplete, leaving me wanting more. But this book? Perfect. It's mind-blowing how Chimeka Garricks was able to write a full story with heavy themes and complex characters in 10 pages and I never felt like I needed more. It felt complete and I was left with the feeling of satisfaction.

This novel as the title implores centres around broken people looking for redemption and healing. The stories cover themes like loss, grief, heartbreak, regret, death, divorce, police brutality, infidelity and family issues. As you can see, the themes are heavy but the melancholic atmosphere doesn't weigh you down. It lingers softly and even though your heart is tearing into pieces, you keep reading, digging deeper into the characters. Chimeka Garricks is an excellent Storyteller and if I could write as good as him, I would never shut up about it. Through his amazing description of Port Harcourt, the central setting in the novel, I could see myself there, eating boli at D/Line street, wiping sweat from my face that stained my handkerchief with soot.

As the synopsis puts it, there's a story of a man who throws a living funeral for his dying brother, three friends ponder penis captivus and one's peculiar erectile dysfunction and a troubled woman tries to find her peace-place in the world helped by a handful of songs and ginger tea. There are also interlinked stories: one of a teenage wannabe-Dj who just wants to play his first gig as his family breaks up; and another of him, years later, as a middle aged man drunkcalling his ex wife

This novel broke my heart in so many ways. With the poignant storytelling, I was glued to my book and trapped in the web of stories. It's a page turner and it engulfed me completely. The writing is simple and unapologetically Nigerian with lots of Nigerian slangs and lingos. I love the characters so much, they were beautifully flawed, perfectly human and authentic. They felt like real people, the story itself felt real. The relatability to the stories shook me. Although I can't say I've lived through the realities of this characters, I know people who have, I've heard real life stories and as a nation we've experienced some like In the City, where a young gay boy fell into the hands of corrupt and murderous police officers. This book was published before the ENDSARS protest and this particular story pictures the reality of Nigerians in the hands of the police force.

Reading this book was a rollercoaster of emotions. There were moments my vision became blurry as I stared at the pages, holding back tears, there were also moments where I laughed out loud. Some stories filled me with sadness, some happiness and some kept me up at night, thinking and asking myself questions. In as much as this is a work of fiction, there are real life experience and lessons so whether you like it or not, be guaranteed that the stories and characters would move or haunt you.

Lost Stars

One of my favourite stories in this anthology, the first story Lost stars. It's about two friends who met as teenagers and have maintained being friend despite their feelings for each other which none of them decides to acknowledge. Sira comes to Port Harcourt for her sister's wedding, happy to see her childhood best friend,Kaodini. It is this journey that would change the dynamics of their friendship forever. In this story I felt love. The kind of love that surpasses the barriers of distance, that doesn't care how many miles is between you and your lover. I saw the kind of love that's in friendship, the kind where you can be your true self without reservation. In this story,I discovered a love so great that it can also tear you apart, pierce you so deep in your heart, you would have to learn to breath again, to float on water. This story was so beautiful and I loved it so much that I've lost count of how many times I've read it. This is my favourite excerpt from the story:

"They will ask me when I first knew I was in love with you
I will sigh and say I don't know.
It happened in fragments, piece by piece, separate moment over the years. Moments - that's how I remember it.
They will be surprised when I say you are the only man I have loved."

I Put a Spell On You

Another story that did I read so many times was I Put A Spell On You. In this story, three friends ponder on one's peculiar erectile dysfunction and suspect his wife is behind it due to his infidelity. Reading this story felt like discussing with friends, the flow of conversations was natural and authentic. I loved this story so much because it was hilarious. I laughed out loud a good number of times. It was also the perfect comic relief seeing that it follows immediately after the heartbreaking In the City which has police brutality as it's central theme.

I enjoyed reading Desperado. This particular story is intertwined with the second story in the collection, Music. The teenage wannabe-Dj is now middle aged man who lost his marriage as a result of his cheating. He drunk calls his ex wife a day to her wedding and begs her not to go on with the marriage. He makes a lot of promises to change.
You broke every important promise ...
This story shows that you can love somebody and still hurt them. Our love for somebody is not a guarantee that we wouldn't hurt them. It proves that love is not always enough, there has to be intentionality and effort to make things work.

River

River was another story that broke my heart. It discusses confraternities in Nigerian universities and it dangers. In this story, a young man loses his best friend, the man who they have done everything together, that friend who was like a brother to him. Years have passed, he has a family but he is still processing the grief that has never left. Reading this story, I was weak and so close to tears. I'm sure Mr Garricks mission was to completely shatter my heart and he did.
You need help. You're confused what you need help for. You don't want to stop thinking about Jon,or his memory erased from your mind. You're not sure you want to stop grieving...

Chimeka Garricks wrapped up this book with the most beautiful story inspired by Yemi Alade's You Suppose Know. In this story, he introduces us to the elderly Mr and Mrs Ngofa who have been married for more than thirty five years and still very much in love; still calling themselves by nicknames. With their constant bickering, I couldn't stop myself from smiling. The love they share is what I want, a love that doesn't wither, finding love and friendship in one person that lasts till the end. As beautiful as this story is, it also broke my heart in the way I didn't expect. Chimeka Garricks really took me by surprise and literally said SIKE. And I was so elated to find my favourite couple in his debut novel, Tomorrow Died Yesterday which i reviewed here in this story and they looked very much still in love. Yayyy.

In Conclusion...

If you're a music lover, you would enjoy this. Each of the chapters are titled after the song that inspired them. You can listen to the songs in the background as you read or listen to it before you read each story. What's better than a great book with lovely a playlist? Nothing. I would always preach the good news that is this book. It's at the top of my recommendation list.

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Thanks For Reading!