The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives

"Alternately funny, shocking, and sad" this novel about female rivalry and polygamy is "a complex depiction of family and culture in modern-day Nigeria." —Sacramento Book Review

When Baba Segi woke up with a bellyache for the sixth day in a row, he knew it was time to do something drastic about his fourth wife's childlessness.

For Baba Segi, his collection of wives and gaggle of children are a symbol of prosperity, success, and a validation of his manhood. All is well in this patriarchal home until Baba arrives with wife number four: a quiet, college-educated, young woman named Bolanle. Jealous and resentful of this interloper who is stealing their husband's attention, Baba Segi's three wives begin to plan her downfall. How dare she offer to teach them to read, they whisper. They vow to teach her a lesson instead. What they don't know is that Bolanle hides a terrible secret—a secret that unwittingly exposes the deception and lies upon Baba Segi's household rests.

A stirring tale of men and women, mothers and children, servitude and independence, The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives illuminates the common threads that connect the experiences of all women: the hardships they bear, their struggle to define themselves, and their fierce desire to protect those they love.

"A magical writer . . . [A] delicious story." — Huffington Post

"Gripping. . . . Shoneyin masterfully disentangles four distinct stories, only to subtly expose what is common among them." —Publishers Weekly

"Book clubs and readers in general interested in exploring dynamic characters and events . . . will find this a strong choice." —Library Journal