"Makumbi's prose is irresistible and poignant, with remarkable wit,
heart and charm--poetic and nuanced, brilliant and sly, openhearted and
cunning, balancing discordant truths in wise ruminations. A Girl Is a
Body of Water rewards the reader with one of the most outstanding
heroines and the incredible honor of journeying by her side." --The New
York Times
"A mesmerizing feminist epic." --O, the Oprah Magazine
International award-winning author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's novel
is a sweeping and powerful portrait of a young girl and her family: who
they are, what history has taken from them, and--most importantly--how
they find their way back to each other.
In her thirteenth year, Kirabo confronts a piercing question that has
haunted her childhood: who is my mother? Kirabo has been raised by women
in the small Ugandan village of Nattetta--her grandmother, her best
friend, and her many aunts--but the absence of her mother follows her
like a shadow. Complicating these feelings of abandonment, as Kirabo
comes of age she feels the emergence of a mysterious second self, a
headstrong and confusing force inside her at odds with her sweet and
obedient nature.
Seeking answers, Kirabo begins spending afternoons with Nsuuta, the
local witch, trading stories and learning not only about this force
inside her, but about the woman who birthed her, who she learns is alive
but not ready to meet. Nsuuta also explains that Kirabo has a streak of
the "first woman"--an independent, original state that has been all but
lost to women.
Kirabo's journey to reconcile her rebellious origins, alongside her
desire to reconnect with her mother and to honor her family's
expectations, is rich in the folklore of Uganda and an arresting
exploration of what it means to be a modern girl in a world that seems
determined to silence women. Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's unforgettable
novel is a sweeping testament to the true and lasting connections
between history, tradition, family, friends, and the promise of a
different future.
