Sharon Dodua Otoo is a writer who is exploring new ways of narrating the Afrodiasporic experience—ways that perhaps go beyond the traditional autobiography or memoir style. Yet, one cannot read her works without noticing parallels to her personal story. As I engage with her writing, I realize that she is creating a third space: a space where she can narrate the Afrodiasporic experience while shielding herself from being too close to the narration.
One such example is her first novella, The Things I Am Thinking About While Smiling Politely, translated into German as die dinge, die ich denke, während ich höflich lächle (2012). What immediately captured my attention while reading this emotional narrative of loss was how she deliberately deviates from traditional structures of narration. For instance, the chapters are arranged in reverse order: the novella begins with Chapter 10 and ends with Chapter 1.
At the close of each chapter, she inserts bolded quotations. While visually distinct, the words themselves carry a raw, unsettling emotional charge—one that seems entirely fitting for someone processing the pain of a breakup. These fragments are narratologically powerful: they convey rage, fear, and disappointment, while also embodying the collapse of trust in a relationship that was once believed to endure.
2. „Habe ich dich nie wirklich geliebt …“. i realy didnt love you…
3 „Eine bessere Mutter, als du es je sein wirst …“ a better mother than you can ever be…
4. „Alle anderen, mit denen ich spreche, denken …“ all the rest i talk to think…
5. „Du bist der größte Fehler meines Lebens …“you are the biggest mistake of my life…
6. „Hätte dich schon vor Jahren verlassen sollen …“ I should have left you years ago..
7. „Und dann werden die Kinder bei mir leben …“ and the kids will live with me..
8. „Sag das noch einmal und ich schwöre, ich werde …“ say that again and I swear I will..
9. „Und deine Mutter meint, ich sollte gehen und keinen von euch jemals wieder sehen …“
10. „Wenn wir keine gemeinsamen Kinder hätten, würde ich dich nie wieder sehen …“
I also enjoyed how the narrator closes the story. As the breakup is evident, the protagonist narrates that when her ex-husband asked her what she was thinking, she just smiled. This unites the end of the story to the title of the novella.
Definitely worth reading. It gives raw insight into the ugliness that is in racism, and breakup; as well as the disintegration of other life’s structures, as initiated by a heartbreak.
Introduction 
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