Ghana Must Go

By: Taiye Selasi

Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh

Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's Summary

The unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of Taiye Selasi’s Ghana Must Go, read by the actress Adjoa Andoh. This is the story of a family - of the simple, devastating ways in which families tear themselves apart, and of the incredible lengths to which a family will go to put itself back together.

It is the story of one family, the Sais, whose good life crumbles in an evening; a Ghanaian father, Kwaku Sai, who becomes a highly respected surgeon in the US only to be disillusioned by a grotesque injustice; his Nigerian wife, Fola, the beautiful homemaker abandoned in his wake; their eldest son, Olu, determined to reconstruct the life his father should have had; their twins, seductive Taiwo and acclaimed artist Kehinde, both brilliant but scarred and flailing; their youngest, Sadie, jealously in love with her beautiful college friend. All of them sent reeling on their disparate paths into the world. Until, one day, tragedy spins the Sais in a new direction.

This is the story of a family: torn apart by lies, reunited by grief. A family absolved, ultimately, by that bitter but most tenuous bond: familial love. Ghana Must Go interweaves the stories of the Sais in a rich and moving drama of separation and reunion, spanning generations and cultures from West Africa to New England, London, New York and back again. It is a debut novel of blazing originality and startling power by a writer of extraordinary gifts.

©2013 Taiye Selasi (P)2013 Penguin Books Limited

Beautiful

Witty, funny & beautiful. The characters were so relatable but avoided being predictable. This one was well worth the hype.

Awesome debut

This audiobook is inspired, interesting and very gripping. Brilliantly narrated, like watching a 3D movie.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Didn't meet my expectations

When I read the synopsis of the book, I was very excited about it. That's what got me buying it in the first place (with actual money, rather than as part of my monthly credit , hence why it's even more disappointing) .
The book started really slow and tedious , going back and forth into the past and back to the present .
It's ok when being read as an actual book then you can always go back previous pages for reference , but harder when being listened to as an audio book as I did .
Perhaps it was because I had been so underwhelmed earlier, but when it did get better it didn't lift me as much as I would have liked . The synopsis made it sound so much more promising and exciting than it actually was .
The narrator had issues with accents too.
It was an OK book, I wouldn't read it again though.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Eloquent writing of an emotional story

Beautifully narrated by a very talented linguist, evoking sounds and smells therefore accurate vision of US, Ghana and Nigeria. At first I thought too descriptive, however persisting on a long car journey, paid off to reveal a very touching story

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great writing, great reading.

This was a wonderful novel, and a brilliant reading performance. Adjoa Andoh gives you a terrific sense of the heart of each character.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Sad but very good book!

Where does Ghana Must Go rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Not listened to many so cannot really Judge. Americanna by Adichie was great though!

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favourite character was Kehinde, I thought he was quite deep and thoughgtful.

What does Adjoa Andoh bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

I could never read fiction, only read non-fiction. I think she made the story engaging and real.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yeah I was close to tears towards the end, so many things were unravelled.

Any additional comments?

The story was initially boring, I nearly stopped listening but It soon became enjoyable and I had to finish it.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Interesting story

I found it to be accurate and mirror the aspirations of the struggles success and failings of African immigrants and the complexity of the relationships they have with extended families back home.

Ghana must go And

Entrancing. A beautiful story of a death and the lives of a Ghanaian/Nigerian family to be read and re-read. .

Dark reality of family legacy

A thoroughly depressing storyline that is explored and expertly executed in a beautifully descriptive way.

A grippimg story

It didn't meet my expectations in regards to what the title could allude to (in my opinion). But it definitely does address conflict, both external and internal. If you find it to be a bit of a slow burner, keep listening to the end, it'll be worth it.