Date Published: 12/14/10

Cassava Republic host book party in Abuja

Cassava Republic Press in association with the French Cultural Centre will on Friday 17th December 2010 host a book party for its newest release, “The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives,” by Lola Shoneyin at the French Cultural Centre in Abuja. Literary enthusiasts and members of the public are invited to the nation’s capital for an evening of art, music, entertainment, and a reading and book signing by the author.

The event is intended to help bring awareness to the book, which has won rave reviews in the United States and the United Kingdom. It is also intended to shed light on some of the domestic issues , such as violence against women, highlighted in the book.

“We want this to be an evening of light-hearted fun,” said the editor, Chinelo Onwualu. “But we want don’t want people to forget that there are also some serious issues in the book. Once they read it, they will see that.”

The evening will feature jazz and soul crooner, Swat, as well as paintings, jewellery, and photography by women artists. The French Cultural Centre is located at 52 Libreville Street, off Aminu Kanu Crescent, Wuse II. Gate opens at 6 pm. To RSVP, send an email to info@cassavarepublic.biz or call: 09 780 3159.

A night with a poet

The book describes the upheaval that follows when polygamist Baba Segi marries his fourth wife, Bolanle. A graduate amongst the other semi-literate wives, Bolanle, is hated from the start. Worse, her arrival threatens to do more than simply ruffle feathers. She's unwittingly set to expose a secret that her co-wives intend to protect, at all costs.

Known for her poetry, this is Shoneyin’s first novel, and it is a light and ironic exposé of the rotten innards of Baba Segi's polygamous household. In this cleverly-plotted story, Shoneyin shows how women in contemporary Nigeria can be restricted, controlled and damaged by the men in their lives. 

Lola Shoneyin was born in Ibadan, Oyo State and educated at the Ogun State University and the London Metropolitan University. Her first collection of poetry, “So All the Time I Was Sitting On An Egg” was nominated for the ANA poetry prize in 1997 and her work has appeared in several international journals such as Callaloo, Orbis and Glendora Review. She is married with four children.

For author interviews and more information, contact:

Chinelo Onwualu

Editor, Cassava Republic Press

Chinelo.onwualu@ cassavarepublic.biz

0806 627 7753