I asked her where they were going and she said ATIK, a nightclub in town near Dartford station. Just then, the guy in the cap shouted: “Chels, be a babe and get us a couple more beers, would you?” She drummed her nails gently on my forehead. “They’re cute,” I said. “What made you finally change things up?” Small Joys isa wonderful bookfullof music, life, and a great deal of heart. . . . Anextremely BIG joy!” —Matson Taylor,author of The Miseducation of Evie Epworth Suicide attempt, suicidal thoughts, homophobia, mental illness, racism, toxic relationships, emotional abuse, sexual content, violence My thoughts

Filled with excellent pop culture and music references of the time, brilliantly memorable characters, lots of laughs and a few tears, it really did give me everything that I wanted. I feel that Finlay deserves a special mention, initially a bit of an eye roll character but he really grew on me and he was just completely believable, I feel like I’ve met Finlay a few times in my life. NA: A lot of British-Ghanaian writers are killing it at the moment. We've got Derek Owusu, Krystle Zara Appiah, Jessica George, Caleb Azumah Nelson – what's in the waayke you guys are eating? Tell us the secret. Oh,” I said, trying to be nonchalant. “I was just out and about earlier, and I had a little accident. It isn’t—­” Corina Diez from Random House Publishing Group offered me an eARC of this book, and I’m so happy that she did because I’m not sure if I would have requested this book on NetGalley. I loved Elvin James Mensah’s descriptive and lyrical writing, and the story felt really personal to me. I am eagerly looking out for Elvin’s next novel!

ABOUT ELVIN JAMES MENSAH

Small Joys is one of three books featured at our New Voices 2023 event at 12pm on Sat 29 April, Methodist Church. Elvin will be joined by Monica Heisey ( really good, actually) and Georgina Moore ( The Garnett Girls) and the event will be hosted by Joe Haddow. Overall, I was very impressed with this debut novel, and I will be on the alert for a second novel by Mr. Mensah. If this review piques your interest, I would highly recommend it for you.

This is a slice-of-life story that is narrated from Harley’s point of view and involves the lives of five friends, Muddy, Chelsea, Noria, Harley, and Finlay. In the story, we get to see how these characters behave and interact with each other. Reading this book makes you feel like you are hanging out with a few friends. The more time you spend with these characters the more they will grow on you. I think the author has done a tremendous job developing these characters. They are all well-crafted and very realistic.Many issues are covered in this book, including race, sexuality, mental health and suicidal thoughts but all are dealt with delicately and with a tenderness that really sets it apart from other books. Elvin James Mensah is a name that we will be hearing a lot of in the future and I can't wait to hear him discuss his work and writing process at this year's festival.