Book Review: "His Only Wife" by Peace Adzo Medie
“His Only Wife” by Peace Adzo Medie
Bookshop | Kindle
Publisher Synopsis: Afi Tekple is a young seamstress in Ghana. She is smart; she is pretty; and she has been convinced by her mother to marry a man she does not know. Afi knows who he is, of course--Elikem is a wealthy businessman whose mother has chosen Afi in the hopes that she will distract him from his relationship with a woman his family claims is inappropriate. But Afi is not prepared for the shift her life takes when she is moved from her small hometown of Ho to live in Accra, Ghana's gleaming capital, a place of wealth and sophistication where she has days of nothing to do but cook meals for a man who may or may not show up to eat them. She has agreed to this marriage in order to give her mother the financial security she desperately needs, and so she must see it through. Or maybe not?
His Only Wife is a witty, smart, and moving debut novel about a brave young woman traversing the minefield of modern life with its taboos and injustices, living in a world of men who want their wives to be beautiful, to be good cooks and mothers, to be women who respect their husbands and grant them forbearance. And in Afi, Peace Medie has created a delightfully spunky and relatable heroine who just may break all the rules.
Rating (out of 5): 4.5
Review: This book is a gem.
It opens with Afi getting married. Eli, the groom, is not present. He’s involved with a woman his family hates, and his family chose to marry Afi to Eli in an effort to tear them apart. Afi is from a village in Ghana and aspires to open her own boutique, while Eli is a wealthy businessman who owns multiple homes in Ghana’s capital.
The novel is written through Afi’s point of view, and we experience the culture shock right along with her after she moves into one of Eli’s homes. She now has consistent running water, multiple bathrooms, is given access to a driver and a monthly allowance, and slowly begins venturing out and starting to create a life of her own—even as Eli ignores her in favor of his girlfriend.
This is a fairly quick read, and I found it utterly engrossing. Medie’s prose is straightforward and colloquial, at times humorous and at times somewhat heartbreaking as Afi yearns for love from her husband. She’s insecure, wise, devoted to her family, and a bit naive at the start—I loved how much she grew as the novel progresses.
I highly recommend this novel for a portrayal of a relatable, modern woman set in present-day Ghana. Afi pushes back on cultural norms and her family’s expectations, but always in a careful way, and it’s impossible not to cheer for her! (And there’s plenty of humorous family drama to boot!)
TL;DR: A gem of a debut novel portraying modern womanhood in Ghana, centered around finding your voice and your power.
If you liked this, try:
“The Book of Longings” by Sue Monk Kidd (Bookshop | Kindle) (my review here)
“City of Girls” by Elizabeth Gilbert (Bookshop | Kindle) (Elizabeth’s review here)
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