20 Sep / A Girl Is a Body of Water by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi [in Booklist]
At almost 15 hours, Uganda-born, UK-domiciled Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s (Kintu) Ganda folklore-infused sophomore title is a sprawling epic with a vast cast that challenges, even occasionally derails, a seasoned narrator like Tovah Ott (Ott’s credits seem few, but under two additional aliases, she’s commanded hundreds of titles).
In rural Uganda, motherless Kirabo is raised by extended family while her father lives in Kampala with his wife and younger children. Kirabo’s curiosity about her unknown parent leads her to secretly visit village witch Nsuuta, who inspires her with tales celebrating the powerful “original state” of women. Enhancing Kirabo’s coming-of-age journey are stories from previous generations, most notably of Nsuuta and Kirabo’s grandmother Alikisa – revealing a childhood best-friendship turned enemies.
Covering over a half-century, as characters age, Ott seems to lose track of who’s who, especially noticeable in giving Nsuuta and Alikisa unnecessary, awkward vocal adjustments, even inexplicable accents. The majority of the men sound disappointingly similar, except when affecting a pseudo-British accent that isn’t.
Though this audio production is serviceable, readers might prefer the page – as bonus, the print version appends a cast of characters at book’s end, its placement ostensibly to prevent spoilers.
Review: “Media,” Booklist Online, September 18, 2020
Readers: Young Adult, Adult
Published: 2020