The Beauty in The Girl with the Louding Voice

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“My mama say education will give me a voice. I want more than just a voice, Ms. Tia. I want a louding voice. I want to enter a room and people will hear me even before I open my mouth to be speaking. I want to live in this life and help many people so that when I grow old and die, I will still be living through the people I am helping.”

My love for Nigerian authors, most especially Yoruba authors continues to grow exponentially with every book I read, and after reading Abi Daré’s novel, The Girl with the Louding Voice, the standard has been raised a bit higher. In her debut novel, Abi Daré puts many contemporary issues that are plaguing Nigeria—poverty, child marriage, domestic servitude, lack of access to education, women inequality/inferiority, adultery—on full display in this book.

This novel was powerful and emotional, beautiful, and infuriating at times. As a reader, I was pulled in from the very first page and found myself cheering and praying for Adunni, the protagonist throughout each chapter. Adunni’s resilience and determination not to give up forces you to take into account the everyday luxuries we often take for granted, such as being able to eat 3 meals a day. But despite every obstacle thrown her way, and there were plenty, she overcame. No matter what she endured, she was not going to be silenced. And while tragedy and adversity might muffle Adunni’s voice for a time, they cannot mute it. She realizes that she must stand up not only for herself, but for other girls, for the ones who came before her and were lost, and for the next girls, who will inevitably follow; she finds the resolve to speak, however, she can—in a whisper, in song, in broken English—until she is heard.

“God has given you all you need to be great, and it sits right there inside of you. […] Right inside your mind, in your heart. You believe it, I know you do. You just need to hold on to that belief and never let go. When you get up every day, I want you to remind yourself that tomorrow will be better than today. That you are a person of value. That you are important. You must believe this, regardless…”

Abi Daré also gave the readers and Adunni a ‘savior’ in the form of the character, Ms. Tia, who despite her own misfortunes refused to give up on helping Adunni achieve her dream of obtaining an education. The Girl with the Louding Voice illustrated so well that even when everything seems hopeless, and you feel less than and forgotten, just one person believing in you can change everything. I highly recommend this book. 5/5

Have you read The Girl with the Louding Voice? What were your thoughts? Let’s discuss in the comments below.

Forever in Awe,

C. Yejide