Cart
Free Shipping in the UK
Proud to be B-Corp

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives Lola Shoneyin

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives By Lola Shoneyin

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin


£8.90
Condition - Very Good
<20 in stock

Summary

To the dismay of her ambitious mother, Bolanle marries into a polygamous family, where she is the fourth wife of a rich, rotund patriarch, Baba Segi. She is a graduate and therefore a great prize, but even graduates must produce children and her husband's persistent bellyache is a sign that things are not as they should be.

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives Summary

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin

Coming soon to Netflix When Baba Segi awoke with a bellyache for the sixth day in a row, he knew it was time to do something drastic about his fourth wife's childlessness. To the dismay of her ambitious mother, Bolanle marries into a polygamous family, where she is the fourth wife of a rich, rotund patriarch, Baba Segi. She is a graduate and therefore a great prize, but even graduates must produce children and her husband's persistent bellyache is a sign that things are not as they should be. She only wants to escape to a quiet life, but the others disapprove of the newest, youngest, cleverest addition to the family. Treated with respect by her husband, she is viewed with suspicion by her seniors - who fear she may unlock their well-guarded secret. Through the voices of Baba Segi and his four wives, Lola Shoneyin weaves a vibrant story of love, secrets and a family like every other - happy and unhappy, truthful and not, sometimes kind, sometimes competitive, always bound by blood, and the past.

The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives Reviews

A Rabelaisian picture of polygamous marriage,comically capturing the physical realities of ordinary Nigerian life. -- Giles Foden
A funny and moving story told with love and compassion ... a jewel of a novel -- Petina Gappah
Riotous... this debut novel is a real eye-opener: a deft, compelling and unsettling tale. -- Ailin Quinlan * Irish Examiner *
This deft, lightly spun story packs quite a punch. Shoneyin's unravelling of a family is rooted in and flavoured by Nigeria, but speaks more widely. It is a book you'll want to eat in a sitting - and then start again -- Diran Adebayo
This first novel is a compelling, unsettling tale of a polygamous household and the women within Baba Segi's walls. Shoneyin's sharply written portrait of a family and a nation gripped by the past, yet surging into modernity, manages to be funny, disconcerting and violent all at once. An utterly gripping read. -- Patricia Duncker
A rich debut... an engrossing and beautifully written domestic tale of polygamy and rivalry set in her native Nigeria. * Harper's Bazaar *
Riveting... a truly compelling tale... -- Davina Morris * The Voice *
An engrossing portrayal of a polygamous household... a rich portrait of a family on the verge of collapse. -- Yasmin Sulaiman * The List *
An insightful and compelling tale set within a polygamous household * Pride *
A novel of clamorous intensity. With such Chaucerian tumult, one expects comedy and there is certainly some humour here, but much pain too... Shoneyin's language is that of a poet, both extravagant and exact... Well-structured and with a gratifying resolution. -- Jane Housham * Guardian *
Exquisitely written... Shoneyin's prose is by turns violent, evocative, witty, humane and gripping. -- Danuta Kean * Mslexia *
A bodacious first novel -- Bernadine Evaristo * Wasafiri *

About Lola Shoneyin

Lola Shoneyin has published three collections of poems and a children's book. The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives is her debut novel. In 2014 she was named on the Hay Festival's Africa39 list of 39 Sub-Saharan African writers aged under 40. Shoneyin is the director of Ake Arts and Book Festival. She lives in Lagos, Nigeria.

Additional information

GOR002935427
9781846687495
1846687497
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin
Used - Very Good
Paperback
Profile Books Ltd
20110106
256
Winner of PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles Literary Award 2011 (UK) Short-listed for Nigeria Prize for Literature 2012 (UK) Long-listed for Orange Prize 2011 (UK)
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives