Where Women are Kings
From the author of The Courage to Care and The Language of Kindness
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5.0 • 4 Ratings
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- £2.99
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- £2.99
Publisher Description
A story of family, adoption, belonging and love from the Costa-winning author of Tiny Sunbirds Far Away and the bestselling nursing memoirs, The Language of Kindness and The Courage to Care
Elijah, seven years old, is covered in scars and has a history of disruptive behaviour. His adoptive mother Nikki believes that she and her husband Obi are strong enough to accept his difficulties - and that being white will not affect her ability to raise a black son.
Elijah's birth mother Deborah loves her son like the world has never known. Elijah thinks it's his fault they can't be together.
Each of them faces more challenges than they could have dreamed, but just as Elijah starts to settle in, a shocking event rocks their fragile peace and the result is devastating.
'Kept us gripped throughout . . stayed with us long after we'd finished the final page' Stylist
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Elijah was born to loving Nigerian immigrants living in London. But, for heartbreaking reasons that become evident over the course of this poignant novel, he endured an unthinkable amount of pain and abuse before winding up on the merry-go-round of child services. At age seven, he's adopted by Nikki, who is white, and Obi, whose own family is also Nigerian by all accounts a dependable, compassionate couple determined to protect, love, and heal Elijah. As the family members come to know one another, they each experience intense tenderness and understandable trepidation. However, as Elijah's past is revealed in more detail, everyone begins to doubt the tenacity of their bond. Interspersed throughout the narrative are letters from Deborah, Elijah's birth mother, deepening the complexity of both the adoration and suffering he's known. Watson (Tiny Sunbirds, Far Away), in addition to being a writer, also works as a nurse, and she approaches the topic with expert knowledge of what a child like Elijah would have gone through, as well as tremendous empathy for her cast of characters. Although much of the dialogue feels stilted, used to explain information or shifts in chronology rather than to reflect the characters' points of view, the book is undeniably powerful.
