His Only Wife

by Peace Adzo Medie

Contemporary

Women's Fiction

African Literature

288 Pages

"I love this book so much I turned the pages so fast! A hilarious, page-turning portrait of modern womanhood. His Only Wife is about the search for independence and being true to yourself. A gem of a debut that kept me tied to the page."

Synopsis

Afi Tekple is a young seamstress whose life is narrowing rapidly. She lives in a small town in Ghana with her widowed mother, spending much of her time in her uncle Pious's house with his many wives and children. Then one day she is offered a life-changing opportunity—a proposal of marriage from the wealthy family of Elikem Ganyo, a man she doesn't truly know. She acquiesces, but soon realizes that Elikem is not quite the catch he seemed. He sends a stand-in to his own wedding, and only weeks after Afi is married and installed in a plush apartment in the capital city of Accra does she meet her new husband. It turns out that he is in love with another woman, whom his family disapproves of; Afi is supposed to win him back on their behalf. But it is Accra that eventually wins Afi's heart and gives her a life of independence that she never could have imagined for herself. A brilliant scholar and a fierce advocate for women's rights, author Peace Adzo Medie infuses her debut novel with intelligence and humor, creating an indomitable and relatable heroine that illuminates what it means to be a woman in a rapidly changing world.

Our Take

Peace Adzo Medie's sparkling debut is a witty, fierce feminist reimagining of the Cinderella story—one where the heroine discovers that independence matters more than any prince. The novel opens with one of contemporary fiction's most arresting first lines: "Elikem married me in absentia; he did not come to our wedding." From there, Medie crafts a deeply engrossing chronicle of contemporary Ghanaian womanhood that is simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking. What makes His Only Wife extraordinary is how Medie uses first-person narration to bring us intimately close to Afi, allowing us to witness her evolution from a naive young woman eager to please into someone who discovers her own voice and refuses to be silenced. The novel brilliantly examines the absurdity of patriarchal expectations—the pressure to cook elaborate meals from scratch, to enjoy sex but not too much, to hold your tongue about your husband's girlfriend—all while infusing these painful truths with effortless humor rooted in acute observation. Medie's depiction of Accra is vivid and dazzling, from mouthwatering descriptions of yam stews to bustling markets and gleaming apartments, making it impossible not to root for Afi as she falls in love with the city's possibilities. For readers drawn to the sharp social commentary of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Americanah or the fresh, contemporary voice of Candice Carty-Williams's Queenie, Medie offers similar pleasures with a distinctly West African perspective. A Reese's Book Club Pick, New York Times Notable Book, and Best Book of 2020 by multiple outlets, this debut is a "Crazy Rich Asians for West Africa, with a healthy splash of feminism"—a memorable novel of personal growth, choosing your own destiny, and understanding that all the money in the world isn't worth the tears and sleepless nights of fighting to be seen and chosen in someone else's story.

His Only Wife

by Peace Adzo Medie