CANR

• The Girl with the Louding Voice ( novel) Dutton (New York, NY), 2020

• The Mechanics' Institute Review website - http://mironline.org/abi-dare-wins-2018-bath-novel-award/

  QUOTE:

  Her family employed several of them during the time she grew up, and as they were similar in age, they became her friends. As Abi got older she saw that housemaids working in other families were sometimes treated very badly. Most of them were only children themselves, as young as nine. With the advent of social media, pictures of the rough treatment of Nigerian housemaids would be posted online. Now a mother of two young girls herself, Abi felt compelled to tell this story.

  Abi Dare wins 2018 Bath Novel Award

  Mari Vindis interviews Abi Dare winner of the Bath Novel Award 2018 and her upcoming novel The Girl With The Louding Voice

  Abi Dare is one of my fellow MA creative writing students at Birkbeck (2016-18) and her novel has just won the 2018 Bath Novel Award with her story The Girl With The Louding Voice. It is the story of Adunni, a semi literate 14 year old girl, written in first person, who works as a housemaid for a wealthy family in Nigeria. Adunni manages to rise above a life of mistreatment, poverty and low status to make something more of her life. Abi wanted to show that, just because society expects a girl to behave in a certain way and accept her lot, Adunni manages to break away from cultural norms and societal expectations. She says, “It is really a story about hope.”
  Abi is from Nigeria where it is quite normal for families to employ housemaids. Her family employed several of them during the time she grew up, and as they were similar in age, they became her friends. As Abi got older she saw that housemaids working in other families were sometimes treated very badly. Most of them were only children themselves, as young as nine. With the advent of social media, pictures of the rough treatment of Nigerian housemaids would be posted online. Now a mother of two young girls herself, Abi felt compelled to tell this story. Abi sometimes travels abroad with her work yet managed to find time to attend university and write a prize-winning novel. She had to negotiate this time with her husband and admits it was very hard trying to juggle so much over the year and a half it took her to write the novel
  She work-shopped some chapters of the novel with “the best workshop group ever” during her time at Birkbeck. She says the feedback was crucial in terms of creating the structure and direction of her story, helping her craft her narrative in line with the comments and suggestions she received. She said that reading thematically also helped keep her in the zone, including The Help by Katherine Stockett and The Eyes Are Watching God by Zora Neale Huston.
  To illustrate her self-motivation, Abi “knocked together a query letter” which she sent to a handful of publishers, together with the first four chapters. This lead to several requests for the full manuscript but nothing came of any of them. She tried a different approach by Googling literary agents, “I just decided to go for it.” She sent the first 10,000 words and this led to her being selected to attend a pitching contest. She pitched for three minutes alongside a bunch of other writers. At this stage Abi had written 40,000 words and when she pitched her “doom and gloom” ending, no one took it any further. Her workshop group had also urged her to change the ending to one of redemption. She then sent out a few more query letters and this time it got picked up Curtis Brown. Abi is now represented by Felicity Blunt of Curtis Brown.
  Felicity was the judge of the Bath Novel Award. All submissions are anonymised, and she had no idea it was written by Abi and offered her representation after the winning announcement. Out of the five writers on the short-list, three of them were current or Birkbeck alumni. Several people emailed Abi to say that the Birkbeck Creative Writing MA seems to be “the go to place” for aspiring authors. Despite winning the prize, Abi cannot give up her day job yet as she has “a ton of rewriting to do” on her prize winning novel. Her next book is to be a romance set against the backdrop of Nigeria’s civil war in the 1960’s, which her father fought in. She is looking forward to conducting the research for it, as well as contemplating a possible Ph.D.
  Watch this space for publication date for The Girl With The Louding Voice.

• The Bath Novel Award website - https://bathnovelaward.co.uk/2018/09/23/interview-abi-dare-winner-of-the-bath-novel-award-2018/

  Quote:
  "I cannot quite put into words what I was feeling. A blend of awe, amazement, thrill, humility, joy, gratitude, brought on by everyone’s reaction. ... It came as a complete and utter shock because there are 1,200 other writers vying for the same prize! Isn’t that enough to squash any confidence any writer might have? I feel extremely blessed to have won."

  Interview: ABI DARÈ, winner of the Bath Novel Award 2018

  Photo: Emma Seal
  Congratulations again on your win. Can you put into words how you felt on announcement night when you heard THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE had won?
  Thank you. I had fought sleepless nights from the shortlist announcement, wondering what ifs. On the night itself, I tried hard to fight the nerves. As Felicity started to speak, my heart was pounding so hard, it nearly drowned out her voice. My mother placed a hand on my shoulder and whispered, “Relax. Breathe.” I let out a breath and then Felicity announced the title of my book. I felt my legs wobble, and then the tears came.
  Writing is often solitary. Many times, the journey is riddled with self-doubt, frustration and moments of joyous awe when you finally get a chapter right. For me, slaving away for months, writing in a Character’s voice that was a delicious challenge without knowing what would become of her was scary. I was taking a stylistic risk with Adunni’s voice. I knew that it could easily go either way- loved or loathed. And so to hear a top agent say she loved my book… there are no words. I couldn’t quite believe it. I literally pinched myself when she was speaking because I was so sure I was dreaming.

  Photo: Emma Seal
  There’s a wonderful photo of you and Felicity hugging…
  I think I was sobbing into her shoulder! I cannot quite put into words what I was feeling. A blend of awe, amazement, thrill, humility, joy, gratitude, brought on by everyone’s reaction. Felicity’s grip around me, which was so sure, so reassuring…was unwavering, solid. In that moment, I felt as though I had known her all my life(even though we had only just met). It’s a weird but beautiful feeling- one I would never forget.
  Were you aware of the reaction in the room, with half the guests moved to tears?
  I wasn’t, not at all. Everything was such a blur of happiness, but I could feel everyone’s joy, it was so real, so genuine. It wasn’t until I got on twitter and began to read reactions that I went… wow.
  Tell us about THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE…
  A story of triumphs, tragedies and friendship, the novel is about Adunni, a semi-illiterate 14-year-old girl who must overcome many hurdles including the death of her co-wife and becoming a housemaid to achieve her dream of going to school.
  Your main character, Adunni, in THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE stole all our hearts from the get go. Can you say explain what a “louding voice” is and why Adunni wants one so deeply?

  Photo: Emma Seal
  Louding in this context refers to so many things. Adunni is witty and sharp-mouthed and refuses to be shut down by some of the people she comes across. Her greatest desire is for her voice (through her fight for education equality and justice) to be heard continually and in places far beyond her imagination, outliving her. She wants to have an outstanding legacy.
  Adunni’s dream is to become so well-educated she can ‘enter inside a room and people will hear me even before I open my mouth to be speaking.’ Why is the transformative power of education so important to you?
  All children, particularly those born into low-income households need to be empowered to fulfil their destinies. While a child’s life can be transformed in many ways- education is a sure path out of illiteracy, poverty, destructive superstition and so many other limitations. Education allows a child become unstoppable if allowed to reach their maximum potential. Education gives freedom and builds solid futures. There is a saying that when you educate a girl, you educate a nation.
  Adunni is forced into slavery as a housemaid to a rich couple in Lagos. Can you talk about you felt as a child growing up with young women working in your own household and how your feelings changed?
  As a young child, I observed that many housemaids were as young as I was and that most were uneducated. Some were treated unfairly. As I grew older and had my own children, I would think about these young girls. I would look at my young daughters, knowing that these maids did not ask to be born into the life they’ve had, and it would tug at my heart. I wondered, what was their story? How did they become housemaids? What did they want out of life? Who would tell their story? And while I couldn’t do much about it as a child, but as an adult, I could use my gift of writing to tell a story that will hopefully inspire change.
  Readers were full of praise not just for Adunni’s voice but also your craft in making them feel they’ve actually been to the settings in the book. Any writing tips on sense of place?
  Open each scene with a clear, specific description of where your character is and let your character discover things in the only way they can. Immerse yourself into the character such that you as the author ceases to exist.
  Avoid clichés- and use fresh similes and metaphors to describe a setting.
  Do your research but don’t let your research be so obvious the novel begins to read like a textbook.
  Use atmosphere to convey emotion: There’s a reason why many books have thunder booming in the sky in a scary scene!
  Use all five senses- of taste, touch, smell, sight, and hearing to draw your reader into the world you are trying to create.

  You finished revising your first draft just in time for the Bath Novel Award 2018 deadline. How long did each draft take and what’s your writing routine?
  The first draft took about six months of practically nonstop writing. I started towards the end of May in 2017 and wrote The End a few days to Christmas in 2017.
  I started the second draft in January 2018. I was in my hotel room in Lagos when I got the email that I had been longlisted. After dancing around my hotel room while trying to explain to my mother what being longlisted for the Bath Novel Award meant; I found a corner in the hotel’s restaurant and worked over the next few days to try and tidy up the MS before submitting it on 28th May 2018.
  With a full-time job, a family, my MA, and everything else that comes with life, having a routine that sticks is a struggle.
  Once I get a story idea, I record it anywhere I find, usually on my phone, and in shorthand and send it to my husband and to myself. He’s become a master at ignoring many of them.
  I don’t start working on an idea unless I am terribly excited about it. The next thing I do is to outline. An outline could take me many months. I outline just enough to get me to the point where I think I am ready to start. I try to define characters, voice, point of view, conflict, setting etc… and then a few paragraphs to frame each chapter. During my outline phase, I do a lot of reading. I read many books that are in a similar vein to what I am trying to achieve.
  Once I feel like I can no longer resist the urge, I start to write. And when I do, it is often relentless. I write every moment I can: On the train in to the office, at work during lunch, Saturday mornings before the girls are awake, at night when they are asleep. I write on my phone, text chapters to myself when my laptop is not with me. Once I am immersed in my novel, I stay there. I am a loyal, dedicated mother to my book babies. It isn’t until I type The End- and I always, always, type “The END” because it is important for me to celebrate that achievement- before I start re-writing and editing.
  You tweeted: “Been writing for 7 years. And on the 7th year, This happened. Don’t give up on your dreams.” Can you say more about your writing journey during those seven years?
  I started writing serialised fiction on my former blog while editing my church magazine for many years. I had previously self-published Christian fiction to good reviews, but I had a dream of having a literary agent, of having the support of a solid, traditional publisher, of seeing my books on bookshelves and sharing my stories with the world.
  I was terrified of writing commercial literary fiction because I felt I had to write a certain way and have a certain story. I also did not want to face rejections from agents. And so, I just focused on honing my craft, until I joined the MA course. I think being accepted on the MA course, and hearing other talented writers talk about how they enjoyed my stories made me gave me the confidence boost I needed to start writing my first literary novel. But, initial drafts to The Girl With The Louding Voice met with a handful of (inevitable) agent rejections- some of which made me cry (a lot!). I bookmarked a page with a list of now successful writers who had been rejected many times (JK Rowling, Kathryn Stockett etc) and each time I felt discouraged, I would visit the page and remind myself that a rejection was not personal or eternal.
  What led you to enter and what was in your mind when you pressed send?
  My supervisor, Julia Bell had asked me to consider writing competitions during one of our workshop sessions, and I recall searching for, and finding details on the Bath Novel Award. I put in a daily reminder in my calendar for January 2018. And for three or so months after that, my alarm would ring, and I would promptly hit delete and push it far out of my mind because I was riddled with self-doubt, discouragement and fear. Plus, I was in the process of trying to reconstruct a query letter that would attract an agent.
  I finally yielded to the nudge, and sent my manuscript in a few hours before the deadline. I whispered a prayer and hit send and then made a conscious effort to forget about it because I was so sure I would hear nothing back.

  Photo: Emma Seal
  As the prize went on, did you have any sense THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE could go on to win?
  None whatsoever. It came as a complete and utter shock because there are 1,200 other writers vying for the same prize! Isn’t that enough to squash any confidence any writer might have? I feel extremely blessed to have won.

  “This is a book that looks at women’s roles, not from a soap box, but from the ground beside them. It is poignant but never saccharine, it is painful but never exploits that pain. It is beautiful because it is ultimately a song of kindnesses. The winning book is a book of many voices, heard and unheard. But ultimately it is about one girl and her ambition to find and own her voice, I am therefore delighted to announce that the winner of the Bath Novel Award 2018 is THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE by Abi Darè.”
  Felicity Blunt, literary agent at Curtis Brown and Bath Novel Award 2018 judge. Read the full text of Felicity’s announcement speech

  You’ve been studying evenings after work to complete MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck University of London. What’s been the most valuable part of the course?
  The feedback in workshop sessions, the friendships formed after the course and learning from astoundingly talented and dedicated tutors.
  Everyone has been supportive. My tutors and workshop group all gave great feedback and kind criticisms to excerpts I shared in class. Julia Bell (my supervisor) gave me invaluable advice that led to my cutting out and re-writing the last 15k or so words of the book which was painful at first, but which made the book so much better.
  Adunni’s voice came to you a week before your first MA supervision appointment. What did Adunni say to you?
  “This morning, Papa call me inside the parlour.”
  Following encouraging feedback from your supervisor to that first submission, you wrote furiously until the first draft was complete. Can you remember what your supervisor said?
  I shared the first 3k words with my very first supervisor- and he sat up as soon as I entered his office. I was expecting him to say anything but, “Abi this is great. This is publishable. Think you can you sustain this voice for the rest of the book?”
  To which I went, “Er…I don’t know!”

  Your mother, Dr Teju Somorin, flew in from Nigeria to support you at the announcement. Can you say a bit about her, her reaction to your win and how she has supported your writing dreams?
  She was thrilled! She’d been a bit drowsy and tired because she arrived in the UK that morning, but the moment I was announced as winner; she started to dance and sing praises to God as she got on the phone with family and friends in Nigeria to tell them I had won- it was such a cute sight.
  My mother is one of a kind. She is incredibly brilliant: she retired as the first female group director of the Federal Inland Revenue Service in Nigeria. She is the first female professor of taxation in Nigeria, and a prolific writer, with over 130 publications on taxation to her credit. She is relentless in her pursuit of education and constantly advocates for me to do more, to be more. She has been outstandingly supportive of my writing and is one of my best friends (although we don’t share the same views on many things).
  What does your mother think of your book?
  She’s obsessed with academic work and so I cannot remember the last time my mother read a novel. She thought I sent her the wrong excerpt. She was like, “Why is it in this kind of English? Did you make a mistake?”
  Then she gave me a hug and said, “Well, it must be special to have been shortlisted. Congratulations.”
  I don’t think she will be reading the full novel anytime soon.
  Any plans for the £2,500 prize money?
  None yet. I bought an electronic toothbrush for my mother. So many people have been supportive of my writing: My wonderful husband and children, my older brother, my pastor and friends- so many people to thank. I think we shall have a celebratory dinner when I can get them all in the same location!

  Photo: Emma Seal
  You’ve had a lot of interest from literary agents. How was that for you?
  Surreal. How did I go from a writer grappling with how to construct the perfect query letter, to one having multiple offers? How do you wrap your head around the fact that people, agents- who I thought were fearsome people- loved my book? I must say that I met the loveliest, most supportive agents in the process.
  At first, it was hard to know who to choose, but meeting Felicity and discussing the book with her over drinks after the winning announcement sealed the deal for me. She’s simply amazing.
  She had always been an agent I admired but thought I would never get a chance to meet or even query- and so to hear her express interest in the book, and then when we eventually sat together to discuss it, everything just felt right.
  Any tips for future winners about how to handle agent interest?
  Take it easy, enjoy the moment. Try and meet with everyone that shows interest and above all, don’t rush your decision.
  What’s your favourite thing Felicity has said?
  Everything she said! But I loved that she thought it was, “A contemporary story with old bones,” and that “Adunni is a character that literally sings to you as the reader.”

  Neema Shah, Victoria Richards, Felicity Blunt, Abi Dare, Caroline Ambrose, Jaqueline P Haskell, Pericles Snowdon | Photo: Emma Seal
  How was it meeting your fellow shortlistees ?
  Amazing. Everyone is so talented and friendly- we will keep in touch, which is also wonderful. I felt and still feel completely humbled to have won amongst such talent.
  All our winning books have stayed in our readers’ hearts long afterwards. Which books and writers do that for you?
  A few books had made me wonder what the character is doing now; if they are okay; if I will ever meet them in real life- even though I know they are completely fictitious.
  These include:
  Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
  The Help by Kathryn Stockett
  Room by Emma Donoghue
  The Colour Purple by Alice Walker
  The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khalid Husseini
  Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult and Still Alice by Lisa Genova
  I could go on and on!
  Can you sum up what winning has meant to you?
  The Bath Novel Award is special for many reasons and of all the awards running in the UK, I think this stands out for its excellence, as well as the wonderful support the writers get during and after each award. For me, winning such a prestigious literary award means that dreams can come true, that prayers get answered, that consistent hard work yields result, and that amazing people exist: people who love books and writers and want the best for them.
  Interview by Caroline Ambrose

  Abimbole (Abi) Darè was born in Lagos, Nigeria and has lived in the UK for the last 18 years. She has a Law degree from the University of Wolverhampton and an MSc in Project Management from Glasgow Caledonian University. Keen to improve her writing, Abi applied for the MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck University of London where The Girl with The Louding Voice formed part of her thesis and was also selected as a finalist in The Literary Consultancy Pen Factor competition in 2018. Abi lives with her husband and children in Essex and works for a leading academic publisher in London. After winning The Bath Novel Award 2018 she accepted representation with judge Felicity Blunt of Curtis Brown Literary Agency.
  UPDATE / WHAT HAPPENED NEXT: Following a five way auction, Abi Darè’s winning manuscript was acquired by Hodder & Stoughton imprint Sceptre. The Girl With the Louding Voice will be published as their lead début fiction title in 2020.

• From Publisher -

  Abi Daré grew up in Lagos, Nigeria and has lived in the UK for 18 years. She studied law at the University of Wolverhampton and has an M.Sc. in International Project Management from Glasgow Caledonian University. Keen to improve her writing, Abi completed an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck University of London, achieving a Distinction. Her first novel, The Girl with the Louding Voice, won The Bath Novel Award in 2018 and was selected as a finalist in The Literary Consultancy Pen Factor competition in 2018. Abi lives in Essex with her husband and two children.

• Curtis Brown wesbsite - https://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/abi-dare

  Abi
  Daré
  Novelist

  Abi Daré grew up in Lagos, Nigeria and has lived in the UK for 18 years. She studied law at the University of Wolverhampton and has an M.Sc. in International Project Management from Glasgow Caledonian University. Keen to improve her writing, Abi completed an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck University of London, achieving a Distinction. Her first novel, The Girl with the Louding Voice, won The Bath Novel Award in 2018 and was selected as a finalist in The Literary Consultancy Pen Factor competition in 2018. Abi lives in Essex with her husband and two children.

QUOTE:
"Daré provides a valuable reminder of all the young women around the world who are struggling to be heard and how important it is that we listen to them. A moving story of what it means to fight for the right to live the life you choose."

Dare, Abi THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE Dutton (Adult Fiction) $26.00 2, 25 ISBN: 978-1-5247-4602-5
A Nigerian teenager determined to get an education escapes an arranged marriage in her village but finds that life in the city is dangerous, too.
Adunni, the 14-year-old protagonist of Dare's moving first novel, longs to be educated and dreams of one day becoming a teacher. "I even been teaching the small boys and girls in the village ABC and 123 on market days," she says. "I like the way their eyes be always so bright, their voices so sharp." But in her village, girls are supposed to marry early, have babies, and take care of the men. With her supportive mother dead and a father who doesn't believe daughters need schooling, she is forced into a brutal, unhappy marriage with a much older man who already has two wives. One wife befriends her and tries to ease Adunni's loneliness and suffering. But when tragedy ensues, Adunni flees to the crowded city of Lagos in hopes of finding a better future. Instead, she ends up as an indentured servant in an abusive household, where her hopes for learning are further stifled. Dare, who grew up in Lagos and now lives in the U.K., paints a bleak and vivid portrait of the expectations and sexual dangers for rural Nigerian girls, who are exploited as workers and punished for having "a louding voice" (meaning they dare to want a say in their own future). Adunni's dialect will be unfamiliar to some readers, but the rhythm of her language grows easier to follow the more you read, and her courage and determination to make her own way in life despite terrible setbacks are heartbreaking and inspiring. Dare provides a valuable reminder of all the young women around the world who are struggling to be heard and how important it is that we listen to them.
A moving story of what it means to fight for the right to live the life you choose.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2019 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Dare, Abi: THE GIRL WITH THE LOUDING VOICE." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Nov. 2019. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A605549639/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=bee29427. Accessed 5 Dec. 2019.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A605549639

• Good Book Fairy
  https://www.goodbookfairy.com/the-girl-with-the-louding-voice-by-abi-dare/
  Word count: 687

  QUOTE:
  "The author managed to weave issues regarding women’s rights, social class, family, abuse, mother/daughter relationships, enslavement and education into this beautifully told story. ... I’m shocked that this is Daré’s debut novel. It was polished and compelling. Absolutely perfect for book clubs!"

  The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré
  by Good Book Fairy | Oct 14, 2019 | Abuse, African, Book Club, Coming Of Age, Education, Favorites, Fiction, Mothers/Daughters, Year 2019

  2 Shares

  The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré–384 pages

  ARC from Edelweiss and Dutton in exchange for an honest review

  Book Blurb:
  Adunni is a fourteen-year-old Nigerian girl who knows what she wants: an education. This, her mother has told her, is the only way to get a “louding voice”–the ability to speak for herself and decide her own future. But instead, Adunni’s father sells her to be the third wife of a local man who is eager for her to bear him a son and heir.

  When Adunni runs away to the city, hoping to make a better life, she finds that the only other option before her is servitude to a wealthy family. As a yielding daughter, a subservient wife, and a powerless slave, Adunni is told, by words and deeds, that she is nothing.

  But while misfortunes might muffle her voice for a time, they cannot mute it. And when 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.

  My Review: 5 stars
  Click here to order on Amazon

  The Girl With the Louding Voice was a fabulous look into the soul of young girl, Adunni, and her will to become educated after she is sold into servitude. There is so much about this story to love. First and foremost, Adunni is a character that will stay with you for a long time. Her ability to compartmentalize her sadness and grief allowed her to stay positive when all the odds were stacked against her. She stole my heart!

  The author managed to weave issues regarding women’s rights, social class, family, abuse, mother/daughter relationships, enslavement and education into this beautifully told story. Told from Adnunni’s POV, the writing is as she knows it. The meanings are clear but often the tenses and definitions are skewed. If you’ve read These is my Words by Nancy E. Turner, you’ll know what I mean. As the character learns more, her writing improves.

  Although this book has many antagonists, there are certainly plenty of characters that offer some light to the story. Those crumbs of grace continue to carry this young girl through darker times. As she grows, so does her awareness of what true love looks like, that money doesn’t guarantee happiness and that education is the greatest gift. I really enjoyed the facts about Nigeria that were peppered throughout the narrative. I learned as Adunni learned; it was a win -win. I’m shocked that this is Daré’s debut novel. It was polished and compelling. Absolutely perfect for book clubs!

  Quotes I liked:
  I don’t just want to be having any kind of voice, I want a louding voice.”

  “Honest, honest, English is just a language of confusions.”

  “I want to ask, to scream, why are the women in Nigeria seem to be suffering for everything more than the men?”

  “Not his-story. My own will be called her-story.

  “I feel a free that I didn’t feel in long time and when I smile, it climb from inside my stomach and spread itself on my teeths.”

  “Death can take form of anything. It clever like that.”

• Popsugar
  https://www.popsugar.com/entertainment/photo-gallery/46868596/image/46869305/Girl-with-Louding-Voice-by-Abi-Dar%C3%A9
  Word count: 133

  QUOTE:
  "The Girl with the Louding Voice is a powerful debut about fighting for our dreams."
  November 13, 2019
  by BRENDA JANOWITZ
  The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré
  Adunni's mother told her that the only way to get a "louding voice," the ability to create her own future, is through an education. The fourteen year old Nigerian girl longs for an education, but with her supportive mother dead and a father who believes girls do not need education, she is forced into an unhappy marriage with a man who already has two wives. A chance for escape only brings another horrible situation. Will Adunni have the strength to go on? The Girl with the Louding Voice is a powerful debut about fighting for our dreams.