The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré - Review

 

I chose this book for my book club choice of 2025. I have seen a couple of friends read it and enjoy it, and I thought it would be good for book club. I'm writing this before our book club meeting so I don't know what everyone will have made of it, but I hope they liked it. I did, but it is harrowing in places and I would give a trigger warning for sexual assault and abuse. 

So, Adunni is fourteen years old and she lives in a small town with her dad and her brothers - one older and one younger. Her mother died a few years ago and Adunni misses her terribly. She has friends, and she wants to stay in education because she is clever. But her family is poor, so she can't do that. Instead, her dad sells her off to a much older man, Morufu. He already has two wives - Labanke, and Khadija. Labanke struggled with infertility and managed to have just one child. Khadija has had four girls and is pregnant again. Everyone is hoping for a boy. Khadija is kind to Adunni but Labanke hates her and bullies her. Morudfu doesn't get involved in the tensions between the women. He takes some kind of elixir and rapes Adunni night after night, wanting her to get pregnant and have a boy. He is a terrible person and Adunni's life seems over. Something happens that means she has to run. She eventually makes it to Lagos. 

She is trafficked by the brother of a friend into being the house girl of a woman called Big Madam. She has fabric stores and is very wealthy. She is married to a man called Big Daddy who she hates. He is having loads of affairs and spends all her money. Big Madam is cruel to Adunni, of course, but some salvation does come. I really wasn't sure where I expected this part of the book to go, but I'm mostly happy with what happened. 

The book is written in non standard English (which explains the title, as Adunni describes herself as having a 'louding voice') with some Pidgin English in there. I wonder if book club members will have had a problem with this, but honestly, I think it's good for us as readers to be pushed out of our comfort zones occasionally. It took me maybe twenty pages to get used to the writing, but once I did, I loved it. I loved turns of phrase that Adunni used and I loved how she learnt things throughout the book. 

She is a genuinely fantastic character and I wanted her to succeed. I've seen there is a sequel to this book which I will have to read! I'm giving this five out of five. 

The Baby is Mine by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Review

At the end of February Lee and I went into Barnsley town centre one Saturday and ended up eating in the Market Kitchen, which is a new extension to the market and features several food counters - poutine, Turkish, Thai, curry, cafe, a dessert place - meaning you can all have different things to eat but still sit together. There's also a bar which does nice cocktails. I've been a few times both with Lee and with friends, and I really like it. I've tried the poutine but my favourite is the Thai. So I had massaman curry and Lee had a pizza, which was freshly made and completely delicious. Afterwards we walked through the market and I bought myself some daffodils and two books. The book stall had SO many books and also had a great system - if you take a book back, you have half off the next one you buy! I'm guessing they then resell the one you've brought back as quite a lot were secondhand. This never bothers me, I like second hand books. The owner also showed me the crime section which was huge. I also bought a new Ann Cleeves book and the owner said, "If you like her you'll love Elly Griffiths" and I was like, I do! I've read everything she's written! I was really impressed by the stall and recommend it if you're in the area. I'll definitely go back!

I picked this up as I really enjoyed My Sister Is A Serial Killer so would read something else by the same author. This is just a short story really, but I was immediately drawn into the world and liked the story. It's also the second book I've read set during a Covid lockdown. (The first was The Fell by Sarah Moss). I'm sure there'll be lots more books set during the pandemic, but it is weird to read about something so recent in our history. 

So at the beginning of the story, Bambi is living with his girlfriend in the city. (The book is set in Nigeria, as is My Sister Is A Serial Killer). However, she finds out he's been cheating on her, and throws him out. But lockdown has just hit Nigeria, and Bambi has to go to his grandfather's old house. After the death of his uncle Folu from Covid, the house is inhabited only by his aunt. But when Bambi arrives, in the middle of a powe cut, his finds Esohe there too. And baby Remi. Esohe was Folu's mistress, but Bambi also had a fling with her. But here's the problem: both women are saying that the baby is theirs. Bambi thinks that his aunt has had a baby recently, but as time goes on he becomes unsure about what the truth is. 

I really liked the story and wanted more - I'd have loved a full novel. The atmosphere is oppressive and I could imagine the house perfectly. I'm giving this four out of five, I am so glad I saw it and picked it up!

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Review

I bought this book a few weeks ago too after hearing loads of good things about it. I often buy books on recommendations from others, and expecially if they're only a few pounds it's cheap enough for me to take a risk on something. I didn't really know what this was about as I went into it, but I don't mind that often when I start a book, do you? 

Okay so this book is set in Nigeria and is from the point of view of Korede, who works as a nurse at a hospital in Lagos. She lives with her mum, her sister Ayoola, and their house girl, who remains unnamed in the book, in a big house built with the dodgy riches of Korede's dad, who is now dead. 

Ayoola is a serial killer. She has killed three men, the latest of whom, Femi, is killed right at the beginning of the book. Ayoola calls Korede to come and help her again, and she does - she cleans up meticulously, and helps Ayoola to fling Femi's body off a nearby bridge. Ayoola says that each of the men attacked her and that she was acting in self-defence, but Korede isn't convinced. She knows her sister well, and knows that because she is very beautiful she often gets her own way. 

Korede has a crush on a doctor at the hospital, Tade. And honestly, at the beginning of the book he seems quite interested in her, too. There's a patient, Muhtar, who is in a coma, and Korede confides in him, telling him everything her sister has done, knowing that he, of course, can't do anything about it.

The book is told in little vignettes of action, and sometimes flipping back to the past, which shows the reader what happened to Korede's dad and the years of abuse he subjected his wife and daughters to. Ayoola and Tade meet and Korede is jealous and warns him off... But is she too late? 

The booked is billed as a thriller and I think it fits well among others there. I liked Korede and really wanted her to be okay. I loved the setting of their fancy house and yet how oppressive it was. I'm giving this four out of five. 

Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta - Review

Where did I get it? I'd heard some buzz about it on book Twitter so when I saw it on Kindle for £1.89 I bought it. 

What's it about? The book spans quite a few years in the life of Ijeoma, starting with the Biafran War when she is a small child, and the death of her dad in a bombing raid. Ijeoma's grief stricken mother sends her to live with a grammar school teacher and his wife, who treat her pretty badly and make her live in a hovel outside. Ijeoma is Igbo, and Christian, but she meets a girl of a similar age, Amina, whose family are all dead, who is Hausa, and Muslim. They share the hovel, and start a sexual relationship. When it's discovered, Ijeoma is sent home in disgrace and her mother starts to discipline her with the Bible, telling her that her love for Amina is an abomination. Ijeoma doesn't agree, and we see her come to terms with herself and her faith as she grows older. 

I liked the scope of the novel, and I feel like quite a few books by Nigerian authors are a bit the same - they're not contained to small time periods. I really liked Ijeoma, she's utterly likeable. 

What age range is it for? While this isn't a Young Adult novel, it is of course about a young girl, so I think that for a discerning older teen, it would be really interesting and enjoyable. I mention some of the more adult stuff below, so take care. 

Are any main characters LGBTQ+? Yes, but take care of yourself for anti-LGBTQ talk as described above. It's utterly believable and in keeping with the character of Ijeoma's mother and their religious beliefs, but it can be triggering and painful to read. 

Are any main characters people of colour? Of course! I liked how the war between the Igbo and the Hausa was explained, too. 

Are any main characters disabled either mentally or physically? No

Is there any sex stuff? Yes, and it's somewhat explicit in terms of body parts, but done in a really beautiful way. 

Are drugs mentioned or used? No

Is there any talk of death? Yes, since the novel opens with a war 

Are there swear words? No

What criticisms do I have? None really. I liked the book and found it pretty easy to read. 

Would I recommend the book? Absolutely. It's nice to read about LGBTQ+ people in a culture that isn't Western

Why did I choose to read it at this point in life? It was one of the first books on my Kindle and I'll be honest, the cover grabbed me, hah

What other books is it like? It reminded me a lot of Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, given the setting of Nigeria and the backdrop of the Biafran War. 

How many stars? Four out of five. Really good read.