The Joys of Motherhood (AWS African Writers Series)
by Buchi Emecheta
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She lives a life of few ups, mostly downs. But the story doesn't dwell in darkness. It plows forward, like the mother in this story. It's a real page turner.
I found it interesting how the people whose point of view are most detailed are the people whom the mother identifies with the most. Besides the mother, this includes her father, children, and even her first co-wife. The other people in her life are like shadows with voices. Even the husband is less personalized and when he is, it's usu...more
I found it interesting how the people whose point of view are most detailed are the people whom the mother identifies with the most. Besides the mother, this includes her father, children, and even her first co-wife. The other people in her life are like shadows with voices. Even the husband is less personalized and when he is, it's usu...more
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Read in January, 2008
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I read this while nusing my fourth child and it was tender and sweet and made me grateful for my role as mother and for the blessings of being able to feed and give my children what they need. The story leads you through the journey of a Nigerian woman's life, her miscarriages, her husband's other wives, her children, and all of her struggles just to survive and raise her children. It makes you appreciate what you have. Mothers I recommend this one.
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Read in January, 1992
It's been years since I read this book, but it was an absolutely unpredictable page-turner. It portrays the life of a woman in Nigeria in the 1960's. She begins as tribal royalty, but with the political changes in the world around her, she ends up in a modernized society. Her marriage and children disappoint her, but her strength of spirit shines through. Highly recommended.
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Read in October, 2006
recommends it for:
everyone, women AND men.
Emecheta is one of my all-time heroines. Her personal life is as amazing as any imagined existance. This is not really so much a story about motherhood as it is a story of courage, struggle, the will to live and thrive, and what it takes to survive harsh reality.
I did a 25 page paper on the book and its author, and got to know them well. Let me know what you think.
I did a 25 page paper on the book and its author, and got to know them well. Let me know what you think.
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recommends it for:
mothers and all readers
I read this in my African American Literature class, and it is a book worthing of reading and keeping. I really love the hardworking drive that Emecheta gives to her main character. She shows how a mother is capable or raising children and how influential she becomes to them.
A great book for mothers who strives to bring out the best in herself and her children.
A great book for mothers who strives to bring out the best in herself and her children.
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One of my favorite novels. This story of a mother's life in Lagos, Nigeria, is a quick read but utterly gripping. I've found that African literature written in English uses simple language, but to a precisely artful, profound effect. The Joys of Motherhood is an exceptional example of this. I've read it no less than 10 times... and it may be time for another...
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Read in March, 2006
It was over a year ago I read this one, so my memory's a little foggy, but I remember being struck from page one: the main character, a woman, is running down the road, as if fleeing, but she's also running toward something, and she's also afraid of being seen. The title is meant to be ironic, and I dare not spoil the rest.
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Read in February, 2008
Buchi Emecheta is an amazing storyteller. I'm reading every book by her I can get my hands on. The only negative I would say is that she ends the story too quickly. I want to see more at the end, but I don't know if she purposes does that to allow the reader to draw their own conclusions. Still, this was a great read.
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This was described to me as the woman's version of Things Fall Apart. I haven't read that to date, but in any case, I Loved this story. So many things about it seemed universal as struggles women across the world face. Engaging writing, universal story though it is site specific. Highly recommend this book.
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I think this my all-time favorite book ever. It leads you through the journey of a Nigerian woman's life- through her miscarriages, her husband's other wives, her live children, and all of her struggles just to survive and raise her children.
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Read in January, 2008
recommended to Scott by:
Annette Trefzer (Studies in Southern Lit.)recommends it for: any mother or potential child bearer
unbelievable book! tracks the life of Nnu Ego, an african woman who leaves her village to live in the modernized Lagos around the time of wwII. i picked this book up on tuesday and finished it on wednesday, pretty much unable to put it down.
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I read this for an African History class but I am glad I did. It didn't change my life or anything but I am really interested in NIgerian cultural and this book is about women, marriage and motherhood. If you like cultural text's then read it.
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Great African Lit. Although I didn't really relate to the character, the narrative style was awesome, and the writing is great. This really isn't something I would have picked up myself so I'm happy I had to read it for a class.
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First novel I read by an African about Africa. I found it enjoyable and anthropologically insightful. Fiction can teach us more about a culture than non-fiction. It also shows us where we all meet as humans
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Read in April, 2008
I was amazed at the strength and patience that women of that time had. I know it was/is a cultural thing but it does make you wonder how people can live certain ways.
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There are no joys to motherhood (at least not according to this book!) A good overview of the mid 1900's in Africa - colonialism, gender issues, etc.
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Read in February, 2005
recommends it for:
women and men who want to understand them
A heartbreaking piece on the role of women in traditional African society, and the fractured nature of that society as modernism rolls on.
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Read in January, 2000
Buchi Emecheta is a very expressive writer. More people should be exposed to her work. All of her titles are worth reading...
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This is truly a wonderful book. You get some insight into how much a mother will do for her children.
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