Efuru

Efuru

Early paperback edition cover
Author	Flora Nwapa
Country	Nigeria
Language	English
Genre	Feminist novel
Publisher	William Heinemann
Publication date	1966
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	281 pp (paperback edition)
ISBN	(paperback edition)
OCLC	27123737

Efuru is a novel by Flora Nwapa which was published in 1966 as number 26 in Heinemann's African Writers Series, making it the first book written by a Nigerian woman to be published. The book is about Efuru, an Igbo woman who lives in a small village in colonial West Africa. Throughout the story, Efuru wishes to be a mother, though she is an independent-minded woman and respected for her trading ability. The book is rich in portrayals of the Igbo culture and of different scenarios which have led to its current status as a feminist and cultural work.

The story is set in West African Igbo rural community. The protagonist, Efuru, is a strong and beautiful woman. She is the daughter of Nwashike Ogene, a hero and leader of his tribe. She falls in love with a poor farmer called Adizua and runs away with him, upsetting her people as he did not even perform the traditional wine carrying and pay her bride price. She supports her husband financially and is very loyal to him, which makes her mother-in-law and aunt by marriage very fond of her. At this point, she accepts to be helped around her house by a young girl named Ogea in order to help her parents who are in financial difficulty. However, Adizua soon abandons Efuru and their daughter Ogonim as his own father has done in past. After her daughter dies, Efuru discovers that he has married another woman and had a child with her. Her in-laws try to convince her to stay with him, i.e. remain in waiting in their marital house. Efuru then tries to look for him, but after failing, she leaves his house and goes back to the house of her father who receives her happily as she can care for him better than others. Efuru then meets Gilbert, an educated man in her age group. He asks to marry her and follows traditions by visiting her father, and she accepts. The first year of their marriage is a happy one. However, Efuru is not able to conceive any children, so this begins to cause trouble. She is later chosen by the goddess of the lake, Uhamiri, to be one of her worshipers, Uhamiri being known to offer her worshipers wealth and beauty but few children. Efuru’s second marriage eventually also fails as her husband mistreats her in favor of his second and third wives.

The novel Efuru is recognized as a substantial stepping stone in Nigerian literature and in the feminist movement in Nigeria, for it was “the first novel published by a Nigerian woman in English.” As a result, Nwapa was awarded the title “Ogbuefi”, which translates into “killer of cow”. This title is of high importance, for it is usually acquired by men. Furthermore, Nwapa gained even more recognition for her work, as the Nigerian government granted her several prestigious awards after Efuru was released.