Review of 'The Weight of Our Sky'

Melati Ahmad looks like your typical movie-going, Beatles-obsessed sixteen-year-old. Unlike most other sixteen-year-olds though, Mel also believes that she harbors a djinn inside her, one who threatens her with horrific images of her mother’s death unless she adheres to an elaborate ritual of counting and tapping to keep him satisfied.

A trip to the movies after school turns into a nightmare when the city erupts into violent race riots between the Chinese and the Malay. When gangsters come into the theater and hold movie-goers hostage, Mel, a Malay, is saved by a Chinese woman, but has to leave her best friend behind to die.

On their journey through town, Mel sees for herself the devastation caused by the riots. In her village, a neighbor tells her that her mother, a nurse, was called in to help with the many bodies piling up at the hospital. Mel must survive on her own, with the help of a few kind strangers, until she finds her mother. But the djinn in her mind threatens her ability to cope.

Review

The Weight of Our Sky takes readers to 1969 Malaysia, right at the beginning of the terrible and tragic race riots.

Powerful Storytelling

Readers follow Melati, a young sixteen-year-old girl. A typical teenager, the only thing that makes her different is her OCD, which she believes is a djinn living inside her.

The portrayal of her OCD and how debilitating it makes the reader so empathetic. The fact that she believes that her OCD results from a djinn taking possession of her body after her father’s death speak volumes. She probably always had a mild case of OCD, but then her father’s death and his last words to watch after her mother sent it into overdrive.

It is an utterly realistic showcase of a mental disorder that can be, at times, so debilitating. And during the 1960s, OCD was not a recognized disorder. It did not become one until the 1980s, when it was finally classified as an anxious disorder.

So to see her try to make sense of what is going on with her, listening to the obsessive thoughts telling her that her mother will die if she does not do things in a certain way, is heartbreaking.

And while she has these thoughts, she gets caught up in the race riots. It started as a typical day for Melati, going to the movies with her friend when the race riots began. Men with machetes separated Melati and her friend, letting her go and keeping her friend.

There are more instances such as this when Alkaf shows the violence without being explicit with the detail. It is not hard to imagine what transpires in that movie theater. And when she sees more violence on her way to get back to her mother, again, the tragedies surrounding her are not hard to imagine.

Final Thoughts

The Weight of Our Sky is a heartbreaking and honest depiction of a historical moment. Worth the read and discussion; the book teaches young readers to be okay with discussing their anxieties and the dangers of racism.

• Writing Quality : 10/10
• Character Development :10/10
• "Couldn't Put It Down"-ness : 10/10
• Intellectual Depth: 10/10
• Originality: 10/10
• Overall Rating: 5 out of 5.

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About the Author

Cynthia Bujnicki graduated from Emerson College with a BA in Writing, Literature and Publishing. She has always loved to read since she was a child. A contributing writer for YA Fantasy Addicts, she is also the Editor-in-Chief for Cyn's Workshop. She lives in sunny South Florida with her husband, son and daughter and their two cats.