LoveReading Says
LoveReading Says
Shortlisted for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction 2017.
A surprising, emotional, and courageous novel, one where the words and feelings gradually unwind from the page and take up residence in your mind. Set in Nigeria during the 1980s, this is a story that at first feels like a window into another world, yet one that is somehow recognisable, as feelings are translatable, wherever they may be felt. Yejide desperately wants a child, her entire world collapses when her in-laws insist on her husband Akin marrying a new wife, in order to bear him children. We see the couple, feel their thoughts, the hurt and sorrow on both sides. I couldn't stop reading, yet the rawness, the pain was in every turn of the page. Unexpected revelations smacked into my awareness, turned my thoughts, captivated me further. Ayobami Adebayo, in her debut novel, writes with a clear and simple intensity. ’Stay With Me’ is utterly compelling, provocative, and a truly beautiful read. ~ Liz Robinson
March 2017 Debut of the Month.
Click here to read Ayobami Adebayo discuss her debut novel Stay with Me.
Head to our 'Black Lit Matters' list to find more must-read novels by black writers.
Liz Robinson
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About
Stay With Me Synopsis
'There are things even love can't do ...If the burden is too much and stays too long, even love bends, cracks, comes close to breaking and sometimes does break. But even when it's in a thousand pieces around your feet, that doesn't mean it's no longer love ...' Yejide is hoping for a miracle, for a child. It is all her husband wants, all her mother-in-law wants, and she has tried everything - arduous pilgrimages, medical consultations, dances with prophets, appeals to God. But when her in-laws insist upon a new wife, it is too much for Yejide to bear. It will lead to jealousy, betrayal and despair. Unravelling against the social and political turbulence of 80s Nigeria, Stay With Me sings with the voices, colours, joys and fears of its surroundings. Ayobami Adebayo weaves a devastating story of the fragility of married love, the undoing of family, the wretchedness of grief, and the all-consuming bonds of motherhood. It is a tale about our desperate attempts to save ourselves and those we love from heartbreak.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781782119463 |
| Publication date: |
2nd March 2017 |
| Author: |
Ayobami Adebayo |
| Publisher: |
Canongate Books Ltd |
| Format: |
Hardback |
| Pagination: |
298 pages |
| Primary Genre |
Family Drama
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| Other Genres: |
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| Recommendations: |
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Press Reviews
Ayobami Adebayo Press Reviews
'Ayobami Adebayo is an extremely talented and sensitive writer ... Fantastic' -- Uzodinma Iweala, author of Beasts of No Nation
'Colourful, vibrant, energetic - a stunning tale of what happens when societal expectations collide with reality' -- Tendai Huchu, author of The Hairdresser of Harare
'A compulsive read ... Just brilliant. Adebayo is an astounding storyteller - an exciting addition to the emerging voices in African writing' -- Jennifer Makumbi, author of Kintu and winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Competition
'Just when I thought I knew where the story was going, suddenly I was left wondering all over again. I read it late into the night - Ayobami Adebayo definitely owes me several hours of sleep!' -- Chibundu Onuzo, author of The Spider King's Daughter
Author
About Ayobami Adebayo
Ayọ̀bámi Adébàyọ̀ was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Her debut novel, Stay With Me, won the 9mobile Prize for Literature, was shortlisted for the Baileys Prize for Women’s Fiction, the Wellcome Book Prize and the Kwani? Manuscript Prize. It has been translated into twenty languages and the French translation was awarded the Prix Les Afriques. Longlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize and the International Dublin Literary Award, Stay With Me was a New York Times, Guardian, Chicago Tribune and NPR Best Book of the Year. Ayọ̀bámi Adébàyọ̀ splits her time between Norwich and Lagos.
Click here to read Ayobami Adebayo discuss her debut novel Stay with Me.
More About Ayobami Adebayo
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