Stephanie Jane reviewed The first wife by Paulina Chiziane
An absolute joy to read
5 stars
When I realised The First Wife was the first published novel by a Mozambican woman I was eager to read it. The book could be considered to be pretty typical women's fiction fare as it centres on Rami's efforts to keep her straying husband, Tony, by her side. However Chiziane's powerful writing and gorgeous prose lift The First Wife way above its genre and I absolutely loved reading it. The poetical sweeps of language are frequently breathtaking and Brookshaw has done a superb job of their translation. I never once felt distracted by an awkward phrase.
Chiziane shows us Mozambique life and society through the eyes of her narrator, Rami, highlighting the differences between men and women, north and south, tradition and modernity. It's for books like this that I love searching out world literature - my preconceptions about lifestyle and marriage choices have been challenged by views from a …
When I realised The First Wife was the first published novel by a Mozambican woman I was eager to read it. The book could be considered to be pretty typical women's fiction fare as it centres on Rami's efforts to keep her straying husband, Tony, by her side. However Chiziane's powerful writing and gorgeous prose lift The First Wife way above its genre and I absolutely loved reading it. The poetical sweeps of language are frequently breathtaking and Brookshaw has done a superb job of their translation. I never once felt distracted by an awkward phrase.
Chiziane shows us Mozambique life and society through the eyes of her narrator, Rami, highlighting the differences between men and women, north and south, tradition and modernity. It's for books like this that I love searching out world literature - my preconceptions about lifestyle and marriage choices have been challenged by views from a totally different culture and yet I could still strongly identify and empathise with Rami and her views on what it means to be a woman. We see, smell and taste love and betrayal, faith and hypocrisy. I would urge everyone who enjoys beautifully constructed sentences to rush out and buy this book as well as literary and women's fiction fans. The First Wife is often a far from a happy tale, but I found it an absolute joy to read.