Housegirl

July 15, 2018
What does it mean to come of age, and how does that change depending on where you live? In his debut novel, Donkor explores the tensions of growing up between two cultures as three young women face the challenges of adolescence in Ghana and among the Ghanaian diaspora in London.Just after the millennium, 17-year-old Belinda and 11-year-old Mary are live-in maids for a wealthy elderly couple--whom they call Aunty and Uncle--who made their money in the U.K. and retired to their native Ghana. When Ghanaian friends still living in London come to visit, it's decided that they'll bring Belinda back with them to London to act as a good influence on their moody, rebellious, and thoroughly Westernized teenage daughter, Amma. (Donkor's parents are Ghanaian; he was born in London.) Donkor's deft shifts between spheres and scenes--house parties populated by posh British teens; the rural village where Belinda grew up and where she and her mother are mysteriously ostracized; the opulent home where Belinda and Mary work--are confident and illuminating, revealing the complexity and nuance of modern life, particularly for immigrants. Dialogue, both external and internal, is often a delight--Mary and Belinda's speech is peppered with pop-culture references and Twi idioms. (There's a helpful glossary at the beginning of the book, though some phrases go untranslated.) As Belinda teases Mary on the phone, shortly after she arrives in London: "And what do you know of planes? Oh, I forgot, you are in aeroplanes all of the time, isn't it? Like a smaller Naomi Campbell." The narrative stays closest to Belinda's perspective, as it is she who travels from Ghana to England and back again. Throughout the novel, growing up is characterized as a series of losses, as Belinda, Amma, and Mary face death, limited opportunity, and unrequited first love. While the conclusion veers toward didacticism, Belinda learns that there's power in living through loss, too.An intimate and resonant take on finding one's place in the world even while being pulled in opposing directions.

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September 3, 2018
In his haunting debut, set in 2002 in Ghana and England, Donkor tells the story of three girls as they become young women, dealing not only with typical adolescent issues such as unrequited first love but also with being at the mercy of circumstances beyond their control. In London, 17-year-old Amma, once an excellent student and high achiever, struggles to define and embrace her sexuality, becoming rebellious and secretive. Her mother, convinced that she only needs a good, supportive influence, enlists the help of friends from Ghana. They send Belinda, their 17-year-old housegirl, to live with Amma’s family in London, in hopes of serving as a role model and correcting her abrupt change in behavior. But Mary, nearly 12, must adjust to losing a friend and mentor when Belinda moves, leaving her behind. The girls’ true selves emerge; they become comfortable in their own skins and capable of honest friendship that transcends childhood. The captivating characters quickly draw the reader in, and the ending is pleasingly open ended, allowing the reader to continue imagining the lives of the girls after the novel is finished. Full of secrets and heartache, this is an excellent coming-of-age novel.

September 1, 2018

Promising new writer Donkor uses his British and Ghanaian background to craft this tale of an aspiring teenage African heroine. When her prostitute mother can no longer afford her schooling, Belinda is sent into service as a housegirl for a wealthy and kindly expat couple who have retired to Kumasi, Ghana. She wins them over with her intelligence and compulsive cleaning as well as her devotion to a younger, more undisciplined servant named Mary. Because of Belinda's sterling behavior, she becomes the ward of another well-to-do expat couple in London, who hope she will be a steadying companion to their daughter, Amma, whose teenage angst they feel is getting out of hand. They aren't even aware of her experimental foray into lesbianism. Belinda can't help contrasting Amma's self-centered behavior with the good-natured, naïve Mary, whom she has left behind. VERDICT Donkor's dense descriptions of life in Ghana and London capture the dazzling disorientation of a young village girl on her own. Compelling female characters abound; it's surprising to discover a young male writer who so successfully inhabits a female point of view.--Reba Leiding, emeritus, James Madison Univ. Lib., Harrisonburg, VA

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2018
Belinda, a teenage Ghanaian native, has left her home village to keep house for a wealthy couple in Kumasi. Once again she is asked to leave the familiar, which now includes her young charge, Mary, and move to London to be a role model for Amma, who matches Belinda's do-gooding with rebellion. Both Belinda and Amma struggle to carry heavy secrets. Belinda is affected by her mother's challenging life, and Amma's love for another woman challenges Belinda's (and her culture's) beliefs. Questions of queerness, race, and social position intersect in important ways in Donkor's debut. Belinda's Ghanaian eyes work to make sense of London while she dearly misses 12-year-old Mary; when they talk on the phone, Belinda coaches Mary on how to make peace with a housekeeper's life. When she is stressed, Belinda cleans, sometimes even in secret, to get calm. Belinda tries to help Amma and Mary, but in the process must learn to help herself. Donkor's nuanced world view allows readers to see the layers of life that intelligent, burdened Belinda discovers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

Starred review from September 1, 2018

Promising new writer Donkor uses his British and Ghanaian background to craft this tale of an aspiring teenage African heroine. When her prostitute mother can no longer afford her schooling, Belinda is sent into service as a housegirl for a wealthy and kindly expat couple who have retired to Kumasi, Ghana. She wins them over with her intelligence and compulsive cleaning as well as her devotion to a younger, more undisciplined servant named Mary. Because of Belinda's sterling behavior, she becomes the ward of another well-to-do expat couple in London, who hope she will be a steadying companion to their daughter, Amma, whose teenage angst they feel is getting out of hand. They aren't even aware of her experimental foray into lesbianism. Belinda can't help contrasting Amma's self-centered behavior with the good-natured, na�ve Mary, whom she has left behind. VERDICT Donkor's dense descriptions of life in Ghana and London capture the dazzling disorientation of a young village girl on her own. Compelling female characters abound; it's surprising to discover a young male writer who so successfully inhabits a female point of view.--Reba Leiding, emeritus, James Madison Univ. Lib., Harrisonburg, VA

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.