His Only Wife: A Reese's Book Club Pick - 'Bursting with warmth, humour, and richly drawn characters'

Product Information

Afi is a young woman living in a small, rural community near the city of Accra in Ghana. Her mother and herself have existed on the edges of poverty, clinging to the good graces of their extended family and of Aunty, the rich benefactor of the community. But there’s one thing missing from this fairy tale – the husband. Elikem Ganyo misses his own wedding (sending his brother as stand in) and only makes an appearance in the apartment six weeks after the wedding. Elikem, it turns out, is in love with another woman and they have a daughter. Afi was the ploy used by his disapproving family to break this entanglement. The question is whether Afi will settle for playing second fiddle or insist that she is Elikem’s only true wife. Afi and Eli had lunch at a hotel after he showed up to her school one day. Eli said that he wanted to be with her and was working on making that happen. They shared their first kiss and Afi was excited, looking forward to life with her new husband. The favourite son of a wealthy family, employers to many of the community, Eli is also clever and considerate, good in bed, and – get this – he’s even willing to make his own breakfast in the mornings, a cause for consternation for Aki, whose traditional values will come to be tested over the course of an engaging, quietly provocative debut.

After eight days, Eli came to get Afi. They drove home in silence, Eli upset with her. He drove her to his home. After installing her into the master bedroom, he moved into the guesthouse that was the furthest from her. He left early for work and returned home late at night, often after she had gone to bed. Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. There she becomes the most highly requested henna artist—and confidante—to the wealthy women of the upper class. But trusted with the secrets of the wealthy, she can never reveal her own… Eli said he loved both her and Muna. This is when Afi realized that Eli would never marry her for real; he wanted two equal wives. His only concession was that she would be the first wife. Afi did not want to be a wife; she wanted to be the only wife. She realized there was nothing wrong with Muna, just that his family didn’t approve of her. When Eli refused to choose only her, Afi asked for a divorce. It is quite common for certain cultures to have this tension between women since the men are presented as this golden prize. Usually can't stand other women being blamed for men not having their shit together, so first trigger. I think the problem is that I wish everyone believed that women were also human beings and not just wives or breeding machines.This is a novel where details about clothing and food fill almost every scene. As always when I read novels set in countries that are unfamiliar, I ended up searching out images of kente cloth ( a highly colourful textile made from strips of silk and cotton with handwoven cloth) and Slit (a long fitted skirt which hugs the body) and the top called a Kaba. The combinations of patterns and colours are stunning.

The publisher's summary of this book describes it as "Crazy Rich Asians of Africa". I read that after chapter 4, when I was trying to figure out why this was not hitting for me. I don't know if I would have read His Only Wife if I had read that at the outset of the book. Personal choice. If you enjoyed Crazy Rich Asians, you'll probably enjoy this book. Afi is willing to accept this lot because it is the best prospect she has. She moves to one of Eli's homes in a luxury apartment building, leaving her small town for the big city. She works under one of Ghana's best fashion designers. And as her new status opens more doors, she starts to question the role she has taken on. Until she and Eli spend more time together and she falls in love.My first book by Peace Adzo Medie but not the last. I bought this when it was on sale and am only just now getting around to reading it. Set in Ghana, this book is kind of a subtle take-down of patriarchal values through the medium of a domestic drama. Our heroine, Afi, is a poor girl with a widowed mother who relies on her selfish uncle for goodwill until she is married to a rich guy who doesn't even bother to show up to the wedding. As we see from the very first addictive sentence in the book, he marries her in absentia. Afi wanted Ivy and Selorm to get to know each other. She hoped that Ivy would come to Selorm’s first birthday party, but she did not. The Ending of His Only Wife Vacation Plans