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His Only Wife

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His Only Wife

By: Peace Adzo Medie
Narrated by: Soneela Nankani
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About this listen

An Observer, Time Magazine and New York Times Book of the Year.

A Reese Witherspoon's Book Club Pick.

Elikem married me in absentia; he did not come to our wedding.

Afi Tekple is a young seamstress living in a small town in Ghana with her widowed mother. Afi's future doesn't seem to hold much excitement. Until, that is, she is offered a life-changing opportunity - a proposal of marriage from the wealthy family of Elikem Ganyo.

She barely knows Elikem, but that seems a small price to pay for a marriage that could offer her family financial security, as well as the key to the glitzy city lifestyle she's always wanted. But when Afi arrives in Accra, she realises that her fairy-tale ending might not be all that she'd hoped for. Now she must balance the often conflicting roles of wife, daughter, niece and sister-in-law, without losing sight of herself.

Bursting with warmth and humour, His Only Wife is a witty, smart and moving comedy-of-manners about the search for independence and the rules that might have to be broken along the way.

©2021 Peace Adzo Medie (P)2021 W F Howes Coming of Age Family Life Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Women's Fiction World Literature

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Critic reviews

"I love this book so much I turned the pages so fast.... It's all about the search for independence and being true to yourself and who you really are." (Reese Witherspoon)

"Mesmerising.... This is not a book to read with one eye on a beach volleyball tournament; it’s a story to soak up in silence, on a long, cloudy afternoon when you have time to think." (New York Times)

"This stirring tale sings when Afi learns to flex her limited power." (Publishers Weekly)
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Afi, the protagonist, is inspiring as she increasingly shows she is strong, smart, resourceful and brave. But I felt troubled by her desperation to please and control her husband, and in the process unwittingly manipulate. It left me wondering whether she was driven by love or infatuation and that if she was slightly less obsessed with getting what she wanted, she might have seen much earlier what was really going on.

I totally agree with other listeners that it would have been good to hear the book read in a Ghanaian accent. Whilst the narrator has a clear style and a lovely voice, the intonation in the reading embued a sense of drama into almost every sentence. This wasn't necessary and it made it feel more American.

Although I'm not sure if I would recommend this book, I look forward to reading Peace Medie's next one. The characters and relationships are very human and the descriptions conjure up clear and colourful imagery, particularly of clothes and food. Delicious!

Look forward to reading the next book from Medie

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First of all I was waiting for the part of the book that explained the American accent of the narrator, This was a book written in the first person who is a Ghanaian woman, set entirely in Ghana. at times the narrator's voice became annoying.
The story itself was quite basic and I found myself irritated by the one dimensional thinking of the main character, who said the same things over and over again throughout the book.

Engaging enough but not much to it

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I enjoyed every part of this book, Uncle Pius made me hiss in annoyance. The entitlement mentality we experience from extended family was clearly captured in the book.

Great story

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Loved the story sympathetically written. My only criticism would be that the narration should have been done with an Ghanaian narrator not an white sounding American. The characters would have sounded more realistic and give a much authentic feel to the book. Then would have rated excellent book audio book, rather than just good.

Very good book

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It was a great story however my only little niggle is the narration… it’s set in Ghana so it would have been great to hear a Ghanaian narrating with a Ghanaian accent, rather than an American accent. As a Ghanaian, there were times I winced upon certain pronunciations. The story would have felt a lot more authentic if they just for a Ghanaian with the accent to narrate… otherwise it was a good story

Good story

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