The girl with the louding voice - a review.

Book 1 of 2023.

I’ve made a decision to read a book a week this year and I’ve begun this by finishing The girl with a louding voice by Abi Dare. I’ll also be writing (short) posts to share my thoughts after reading them. Here’s the first;

The girl with the louding voice is a unique read for many reasons. First, and perhaps most “in your face”, is the unique use of language by the author to portray the educational level of the main character, Adunni.

I stumbled over the dialogue many times and humorously described the writing as “atrocious”, but the intentionality is not lost on me. We’re meant to stumble over Adunni’s use of language as Adunni herself has had to stumble through her tumultuous life.

As the book progresses and Adunni’s education and level of exposure increases, her use of language gets increasingly better and this is particularly heartwarming for me. I felt the slow and steady ease she encountered as her experiences slowly improved and I think this is the greatest metaphor for the book’s title. Language is powerful, and as the girl with the louding voice finds her control of it, of her voice, we feel that power effusing as we read.

Another thing I find deeply interesting is how the author exposes some sad realities about womanhood through key characters in the novel. Each woman that Adunni encounters from her mother to Morufu’s wives, “Big Madam” and even Ms. Tia who wounds up being her saviour, have complex lives that are all deeply and adversely affected by society and patriarchy.

It exposes the reality that while a lot of progress has been made, true equality is not quite what it should be for many reasons. These reasons include but are not limited to a deeply misogynistic cultural and religious belief system in Nigeria. A lot still has to change.

Finally, but not least, the book exposes a great contrast between rural life and the modern city of Lagos. As Adunni moves from her village to the city, she observes the vastly different lifestyles and priorities in these places. Things are different by more than a mile.

No one can tell, just by looking, how different things really are for her. I hope to keep this in mind for everyone I come across - how different their lives probably are, and how much better a little act of kindness could make them feel.

Overall, while the use of language, though functional, makes the book a little hard to read, The girl with the louding voice is an interesting journey. The characters felt real and relatable. Frighteningly, it felt like a story that could be happening just down the street from you.

7/10.