His Only Wife

Rating: 4 (10 votes)

Tags: Set in Liberia Set in Ghana Female author

Description:

A REESE WITHERSPOON x HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK CLUB PICK A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR A Must-Read Novel: The New York Times Book Review * BuzzFeed * Time * Marie Claire * Parade * Travel + Leisure * Ms. * Bustle * The Millions * Book Riot * PopSugar * HelloGiggles * Kirkus Reviews* Good Morning America “[A] mesmerizing debut novel.” —The New York Times Book Review “A story that kept me tied to the page, told in masterful, seamless prose.” —BuzzFeed “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 Afi Tekple is a young seamstress in Ghana. Smart and pretty, she has also been convinced by her mother to marry a man she doesn’t know: a wealthy businessman named Elikem. His family has chosen Afi in the hopes that she will distract him from a current relationship they disapprove of. When Afi is moved from her small hometown to live in Accra, Ghana’s gleaming capital full of wealth and sophistication, she is not prepared for the way her life will change. But she has agreed to this marriage in order to give her mother the financial security she desperately needs, and so Afi must see it through. Or must she? A witty, moving, and smart debut novel, His Only Wife takes place in a world of men who want their wives to be beautiful, to be good cooks and mothers, to grant their husbands forbearance. And in Afi, we meet a delightful, brave, and relatable heroine who just may break all the rules.

Reviews:

Audrey Morris (10 months ago)	03 Dec, 2024 Read 10 Sep 20
Julia Mar (6 months ago)	04 Apr, 2025 *Spoilers*This is a story about a woman coming to respect herself no matter what her in-laws, her husband, her mother, or her friends tell her. Afi will not sacrifice her happiness to uphold a fake-ideal family picture. Her husband cheats so she leaves. Simple as that. She also doesn't blame the woman, Muna. Muna did nothing wrong. She fell in love with Eli and his family hated that she wouldn't dance to their tune, so they tried to replace her with Afi. They called Muna manish because she had a backbone. They called Afi unreasonable because she wanted a marriage and not a lie.
Kelly0102 (4 months ago)	11 Jun, 2025 I enjoyed this book. To me this is a more accurate feminist book than many with clear defined “feminist” characters. If Evelyn or Muna were the main character then it would have been a typical feminist book, but Afi brought something more realistic - that feeling of doubt. That feeling of wanting to be a strong, independent woman that is not defined by a man, but still wondering “why am I not enough for this man?” I also appreciated that Eli was not made out to be a particularly bad person, he wasn’t demonized just to prove a point. I think what he was doing was unfair to both women and on a scale of good partners he would rate pretty low in my books, but he wasn’t vindictive like his mother or sister. I’ve read a lot of comments comparing Peace Adzo Medie with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie but I am probably one of the few who prefers Medie. Her writing is maybe not as eloquent but it’s less forced in its commentary, less black and white in its understanding of people and the world.