The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives: A Novel

African-born poet Lola Shoneyin makes her fiction debut with The Secret Lives of Babi Segi’s Wives, a perceptive, entertaining, and eye-opening novel of polygamy in modern-day Nigeria. The struggles, rivalries, intricate family politics, and the interplay of personalities and relationships within the complex private world of a polygamous union come to life in The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives—Big Love and The 19^th Wife set against a contemporary African background.

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.

Meet Baba Segi . . .

A plump, vain, and prosperous middle-aged man of robust appetites, Baba Segi is the patriarch of a large household that includes a quartet of wives and seven children. But his desire to possess more just might be his undoing.

And his wives . . .

Iya Segi—the bride of Baba Segi's youth, a powerful, vindictive woman who will stop at nothing to protect her favored position as ruler of her husband's home.

Iya Tope—Baba Segi's second wife, a shy, timid woman whose decency and lust for life are overshadowed by fear.

Iya Femi—the third wife, a scheming woman with crimson lips and expensive tastes who is determined to attain all that she desires, no matter what the cost.

Bolanle—Babi Segi's fourth and youngest wife, an educated woman wise to life's misfortunes who inspires jealousy in her fellow wives . . . and who harbors a secret that will expose shocking truths about them all.

“Nigerian poet Lola Shoneyin makes her fiction debut with this entertaining novel of modern-day polygamy in Nigeria.” - Jet

“Her book is juicy like a beach read, but deeply authentic and grave.” - Theurbannews.com

“Using alternating narration, Shoneyin quickly gains the readers interest in this warts-and-all depiction of a culture that will be unfamiliar to many. Each wife finds her own way to assert her power and desire within the confines of a patriarchal system; in some cases, with disastrous consequences. Book clubs and readers in general interested in exploring dynamic characters and events, and who can tolerate some sex and violence, will find this a strong choice.” - Library Journal

Alternately funny, shocking, and sad, The Secret Lives is a complex depiction of family and culture in modern-day Nigeria. - Sacramento Book Review

“Shoneyin, a magical writer, spins her web of story with deceptively simple elegance. Her novel opens the door wider to a reader’s understanding with each chapter. Those who appear to be villains are suddenly revealed as tortured souls. Shoneyin, like all good writers, knows that villains aren’t one-dimensional.... Deceptively straightforward, with lines that merited re-reading and being turned like jewels to catch the light, The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives is one of those wonderful books which has brain-building nutrients tucked into the delicious story.” - Huffington Post

Shoneyin handles the multiple points of view skillfully, each voice recognizably its own, and knows exactly where she’s weaving her plot threads, so that the alternating voices have an actual narrative purpose. This frequently hilarious novel develops moral depth, and everything wraps realistically and satisfyingly, with some sadness, some loss and some hard lessons learned. A frequently hilarious novel, with moral depth, about a Nigerian polygamist, his three wives and seven children and the arrival of his fourth, and university-educated, wife. - Shelf Awareness

Blind acceptance splinters a polygamous marriage in Shoneyin’s gripping debut set in modern-day Nigeria....Shoneyin masterfully disentangles four distinct stories, only to subtly expose what is common among them. - Publishers Weekly