Reviews

Fique comigo by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

skaimml118's review against another edition

emotional

4.0

caitoburnett's review against another edition

5.0

A haunting, spectacular novel that I devoured but hated to finish. Watching Yejide yearn to become a mother, and seeing the challenges and heartbreak that come with being a parent was devastating and validating. I loved everything about this novel. Ayobami is a beautiful writer.

katko123's review against another edition

4.0

I have received this book in exchange for an honest review.

Before I started reading this book I have read about Nigeria where the story is set. The main problem is overpopulation. It used to be 16.6 million people in 2013 and it'd expected to be over 50 million in next 30 years. It is normal to have 4 wives (as Koran allows) and at least 11-15 children in one family. As a result the wildlife has decreased and the drought became an everyday problem.

Having all that in mind reading a story where a woman is under a huge pressure to conceive ... well it wasn't easy.
It's a beautiful tale about love, loss, sacrifice and a fight between modern and tradition. Social relations and traditions I found particularly interesting.

sade's review against another edition

4.0

One of the greatest lies ever sold to women is "LOVE" and how women are supposed to bend over backwards, break themselves if need be for love...
This book had me up in my feelings because you really hear about this kind of things happening. How women are made to feel less than because they aren't mothers. It was especially painful for me reading about Yejide because she had no-one in her corner.. No one to tell her this isn't love and that she deserves better.

My one negative with this book was that I didn't like that a whole lot of pages were devoted to political commentary at that time in Nigeria. Mainly because it just didn't seem to gel and was sort of jarring really to have that much political commentary.

All in all a really fantastic read, that I would recommend to everyone.

Also p.s Tomi Adeyemi could really use this as a sort of reference on how to write Yoruba in books and also what constitutes Yoruba names.

marianateles's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective

4.0

papasteff's review against another edition

dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

almond327's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

retiredjourno15's review against another edition

5.0

Phenomenal book. The ending wrecked me. 😭

shimmery's review against another edition

4.0

What I liked about this book was that it does a really good job of showing how we experience macro/political events alongside what happens on a micro/personal level in our lives. The story of Yejide and Akin’s marriage and struggle to start a family is told against a backdrop of the political unrest in Nigeria in the 1980s, which at times pales in comparison to their personal struggles and at other times exacerbates them. An emotional read that handles complexity really well.

reydeam's review against another edition

4.0

“If the burden is too much and stays too long, even love bends, cracks, comes close to breaking and sometimes does break. But when it's in a thousand pieces around your feet, that doesn't mean it's no longer love.”

An emotionally stirring, intelligently written story told with sympathetic characters that struggle with their infertility; Yejide and Akin make choices and decisions with lasting consequences.

I was immediately drawn to Yejide and Akin’s world as they told their story from their different POVs. Their lives and struggles felt real. Their choices and actions were raw which I am sure was met with dislike by many readers. At times, I felt a weight on my shoulders from their decisions. Their trajectories, however, did not cause me to dislike them but only to embrace their story even more.

Stay with Me goes beyond the struggles of infertility to give a deeper look into love, the fragility of relationships under stress, the weight of societal and family expectations along with the effects of broken communication, betrayal, and loss. It’s a story well painted with words with an ending that was beautifully written. A ray of hope was seen.


Side note: I listened to the audiobook edition of this story. The narrator was fantastic; narrated by Adjoa Andoh. I appreciated her Nigerian accent which added depth and a greater sense of the story.

Rating: 4 1/2 stars