Fourteen-year-old Adunni lives in a rural Nigerian village where her father sells her into marriage to a local polygamist to pay the rent. After a series of tragedies, she flees to Lagos and becomes an indentured housemaid for a wealthy, abusive woman known as Big Madam. Throughout these hardships, Adunni pursues a formal education and a "louding voice," her term for the ability to speak for herself and decide her own future. She navigates the physical dangers of domestic servitude while learning English and seeking the truth about her predecessor, a servant who disappeared under suspicious circumstances.
This novel serves readers interested in contemporary international fiction and stories of institutional gender inequality. It attracts those looking for a specific perspective on the Nigerian class system and the reality of modern domestic slavery. Readers finish the book with a clear understanding of how poverty and lack of education restrict female autonomy. They observe the development of a unique narrative voice that adapts the English language to reflect the protagonist's cultural background and internal growth.
Inward-looking; an easy read.
Best for readers like The Empathetic Explorer. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2020
- Language
- EN
