Who Are The Main Characters In Known And Strange Things: Essays?

2026-01-05 22:40:11
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3 Answers

Brianna
Brianna
Favorite read: Though a Mirror Darkly
Book Clue Finder Worker
If we're talking 'main characters' in Cole's essay collection, I'd argue it's the reader. His writing has this way of pulling you into conversations—with Kara Walker's unsettling art, with the ghosts of colonialism, even with his iPhone's cold glow. The essays jump from Netflix to Nietzsche, and you end up feeling like a participant rather than just an observer. There's a hilarious bit where he becomes obsessed with Google Street View, virtually wandering Swiss Alps while physically stuck in his apartment—that's when you realize you're the weirdo alongside him, clicking through digital landscapes at 2AM.

Other standouts? Photography itself feels like a central figure, especially in pieces dissecting the ethics of images. That essay about the bombing of Dresden made me stare at my own vacation photos differently. And don't get me started on his musings about language—English and Yoruba practically duke it out on the page. Honestly, finishing this book left me with that rare feeling like I'd traveled somewhere without moving from my couch.
2026-01-07 02:25:50
27
Liam
Liam
Favorite read: Who Is Who?
Reviewer Teacher
Teju Cole's 'Known and Strange Things' isn't a novel with traditional protagonists, but its essays pulse with recurring figures—both real and imagined. The book feels like a mosaic of encounters: there's W.G. Sebald, whose haunting prose Cole dissects with reverence, and James Baldwin, whose shadow lingers over discussions of race and belonging. Then there's Cole himself, threading through airports, art galleries, and digital spaces, observing everything with a photographer's eye (which makes sense—he's one!). His voice is the true anchor, whether he's analyzing drone warfare or reminiscing about Lagos street food.

The collection's 'characters' are often ideas—migration, memory, the tension between seeing and being seen. I love how Cole treats place as a living entity too; cities like New York and Lagos become protagonists in their own right. It's less about plot and more about the way certain faces—Frantz Fanon's stern gaze, a stranger's smile in a foreign subway—stick with you long after reading. Makes me want to revisit his fiction, like 'Open City,' where this observational magic becomes full-blown narrative.
2026-01-08 21:40:59
20
Chase
Chase
Favorite read: Strange short stories
Plot Detective Analyst
Cole's essays are packed with cameos from artists and thinkers who shape his worldview—it's like a dinner party where Baldwin chats with Instagram algorithms. The most vivid 'character' might be displacement itself; that ache of being between cultures, which Cole articulates through everything from family stories to post-9/11 politics. His description of Nigerian parents calling abroad just to hear the dial tone? Heart-wrenching.

Then there are the quieter presences: his father's medical career threading through discussions of African healthcare, or the way classic literature (hello, 'Don Quixote') sneaks into tech critiques. What sticks with me is how he treats objects as characters—a typewriter in a museum isn't just a relic but a witness to lost ways of creating. Makes you wonder what our smartphones will say about us in 50 years.
2026-01-11 01:10:15
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I stumbled upon 'Known and Strange Things: Essays' while browsing a bookstore, and the title alone hooked me. Teju Cole’s writing is this mesmerizing blend of personal reflection and global commentary—like chatting with a friend who’s traveled everywhere and noticed everything. The essays range from photography to politics, but what stuck with me was how he connects seemingly unrelated dots. One minute he’s analyzing a street scene in Lagos, the next he’s dissecting Shakespeare. It’s not for readers who want quick takeaways; it demands attention, but rewards you with moments of clarity that feel like tiny epiphanies. I’d especially recommend it if you enjoy essays that linger in your mind long after reading. Cole’s voice is calm but incisive, and his observations about displacement and identity resonate deeply in today’s world. It’s the kind of book I keep on my shelf for slow afternoons when I want to feel both unsettled and understood.

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