The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives

By: Lola Shoneyin

Narrated by: Lola Shoneyin

When Baba Segi awoke 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. To the dismay of her ambitious mother, Bolanle marries into a polygamous family, where she is the fourth wife of a rich, rotund patriarch, Baba Segi. She is a graduate and therefore a great prize, but even graduates must produce children, and her husband's persistent bellyache is a sign that things are not as they should be.

She only wants to escape to a quiet life, but the others disapprove of the newest, youngest, cleverest addition to the family. Treated with respect by her husband, she is viewed with suspicion by her seniors - who fear she may unlock their well-guarded secret.

Through the voices of Baba Segi and his four wives, Lola Shoneyin weaves a vibrant story of love, secrets and a family like every other - happy and unhappy, truthful and not, sometimes kind, sometimes competitive, always bound by blood and the past.

©2013 Lola Shoneyin (P)2020 Hachette Audio UK

Nicely weaved family story

Firstly, I love African stories (I’m a bit biased, I’m a child of the soil). This is set in Nigeria, A man and his 4 wives and a big family secret. The secret is predictable from the very beginning (They could have done a better job concealing this to the reader, would have been a nice reveal), but the story is good and not as predictable. The ending is tragic but satisfying. Narrator was good also, I enjoyed her voice.

A beautiful read

My first of the author’s works - absolutely entertaining, colourful and heartfelt. A beautiful analogy of reaping what you saw

Good storyline

The story is both solemn and humorous. It also bears the reality of polygamous households, traditional roles and taboos.

Humour, pain and confusion

Baba Segi’s Wives offers an eye-opening look into the emotional realities of polygamous marriage, the envy, manipulation, rivalry, and how much it often serves the man more than the women. There are some humorous touches that balance the heaviness of the subject, and at times the storytelling really draws you in.

What didn’t work for me were the overly graphic sexual scenes, especially the detailed depictions of assault, which felt unnecessary and distracted from the story’s message. I also found myself occasionally confused about which wife’s perspective I was following.

Overall, it’s insightful and at times entertaining, but not always easy to read.

The story

Character build is amazing here. Love love the story. Lola did snfantastic job with this one!