Whispers from Vera

Goretti Kyomuhendo

Description

Twenty-nine-year-old Vera is desperate to meet Mr Right after several failed relationships. A high-flyer, Vera is determined to have it all: a husband, family and an illustrious career. When she meets Eric, a hunky, corporate executive, Vera is elated. Eric is thirty-one, single and searching. Then a secret of unimaginable magnitude that Eric has kept from Vera surfaces, threatening to destroy their otherwise perfect romance. Will Vera make the necessary sacrifices to keep the fame burning? Set against the vibrancy of Kampala metropolis in the 2000s, Whispers from Vera is a light-hearted, tongue-in-cheek read, enriched with Uglish and local languages. Free-spirited and audacious, Vera documents the whole gamut of her life’s experiences as she navigates through the lows and highs of motherhood and wifehood of a middle-class, modern-day, Ugandan career woman.

Sujets

• General officer
• General
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: African Writers Trust
• Date de parution: 11 août 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789970280056
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

PRAISE FOR WHISPERS FROM VERA

‘InWhispers from Vera,Kyomuhendo displays Goretti mastery of storytelling, wit and humour about an intimate relationship that goes beyond the allure of romance to the nuance of what can make or break a bond. It’s gripping and timeless.’

— Ber Anena (Uganda) Author ofA Nation in Labour

‘Goretti Kyomuhendo has skilfully woven a page-turning story of romance, family politics, the corporate sector, and gender issues. She has interlaced the story with delightful local language phrases which give the story an authentic and earthy feel.’

— Mũthoni wa Gĩchũrũ(Kenya) Author ofBreaking te Silence

‘Goretti Kyomuhendo masterfully takes the reader on a journey through Vera’s mind as she encounters various joys and challenges in her new chapter of life. Reading this story is like sitting on a plush sofa, a glass of wine (or waragi or a cup of tea) in hand, catching up with your dramatic Ugandan best friend. What a beautiful treat!’

— Neema Komba (Tanzania) Author ofMektildis Kapinga: A Silent Hero

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‘Whispers from Veraone of Africa’s timeless novels. It is masterfully represents the African story, the African woman in her daily life to keep up with all the responsibilities she carries in her heart. It’s a phenomenal story of women’s empowerment narrated in an artistic, humorous fashion, yet so close to reality. It also reminds the modern woman that she can have it all. She can care for her family and yet win at work. … It’s a fun, entertaining, and informative novel …’

—Caroline Numuhire (Rwanda) Author ofBetween Wild and Free

‘Goretti is a wonderful storyteller, and inWhispers from Vera,she gifts us a humorous tale about a young corporate woman navigating life, love, and marriage in Kampala at the turn of the century. Told in a conversational style, which makes you think of very entertaining gossip from your best friend,Whispers from Verayou, and does grips not let you go until you are rolling on the floor with laughter.’

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—Dilman Dila (Uganda) Author ofA Killing in te Sun

‘Whispers from Verais an honest look at the life of a married woman in Kampala, balancing her career, wifely duties, children, friends and extended family on both sides. Vera is a complicated woman who pulls us into her life—and her thoughts about that life—and we go along for the ride. I hope the ending means we’re going to hear more from Vera in the future.’

—Lauri Kubuitsile (Botswana) Author ofhe Scattering

‘Kyomuhendo weaves a riveting, heartwarming narrative that explores themes of resilience, romance, motherhood, and pursuit of freedom. Vera’s whispers are enriched with Uglish, and colloquialisms, that lift the human spirit and celebrate the invincible power of story -telling.’

—Glaydah Namukasa Bwogi (Uganda) Author ofVoice of a Dream

‘A beautiful tribute to women. A must read for those who are curious about the longings, dreams and daily lives of African women … Kyomuhendo takes us on an unforgettable journey through the corridors of womanhood. … A timely, must-read book.’

—Gloria Mwaniga Odary (Kenya) Author of theSuper Sara Series

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‘This hilarious and heart-warming tale of love, loss, and redemption is guaranteed to make you laugh, cry, and swoon all at once. Vera learns that sometimes, true love doesn’t just complete your circle, but it helps you create a whole new one.’

—Ingrid Nayame (Zambia) author ofHymn For he Womb

‘Vera’s whisper is quiet as it is loud. Loud in its exploration of female sexuality. Loud in its depiction of Vera as a desiring subject. Loud in its exploration of sexual pleasure. Loud in its disruption of what is usually considered appropriate feminine behaviours. Goretti Kyomuhendo’s unforgettable character will definitely make you laugh and sometimes cry with her; she will make you think about identities and make you relate with something about/around her as she takes you through the struggles of being a middle-class young woman in Uganda.’

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Asante Lucy Mtenje (PhD), Associate Professor, Department of Literary Studies University of Malawi

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ALSO BY GORETTI KYOMUHENDO

Waiting

Secrets no More

The First Daughter

First Published and Printed by

Monitor Publications Ltd

th Plot 29-35, 8 Street, Industrial Area

P.O. Box 12141

Kampala-Uganda

Tel:[phone]

Cellphones: 078-260022/3/2/5/6,260016/7/8

Fax:[phone]

Email:[e-mail]

Copyright©2002, 2023 by Goretti Kyomuhendo

The moral right of Goretti Kyomuhendo to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted.

First Published in 2002

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written permission of African Writers Trust Limited.

ISBN 9970-411-66-6 /978-9970-28-004-9

This second edition first published in 2023 by African Writers Trust Limited.

Plot 819, off Kiira Road,

Kyaliwajjala, Namugongo,

P.O Box 6753 Kampala, Uganda.

Telephone: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]

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DEDICATION

For Eva, Ayeta, Betty, Sanyu, Susan, Sandra (and Jane, RIP) For a friendship so deep and sincere So unconditional and timeless For the laughter we share The stories we tell The sorrows we endure

TOGETHER.

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For Jane

The Hague, Netherlands, 24 November 2000

I could talk till tomorrow of the sweet moments I shared with Jane. I could talk till the sun turned bright orange in preparation for its final descent.

I could talk of the games we played with the stubborn goats, persuading them to go out in the morning to feed; of theamasaasawe picked from the wild bushes and ate raw and unwashed.

I could talk of the songs of merriment we chanted on our way from school as we trod the narrow village paths; of theamatojothat stuck in our toes as we sprinted to be the first to the well; of the clay water pots we balanced precariously on our heads; of the cassava leaves we placed in the pots to prevent the water from swishing this way and that.

I could talk of our careers, of boyfriends, of broken re- lationships and disappointments. Of the challenges of womanhood, of failed marriages, of the fears and anxiet- ies of growing old, of becoming overweight.

I could talk about all this until God became an old man.

But I will not talk of the bygones. I will talk of the gift that you were to many of us. I will cherish your memory and guard it jealously.

Till we meet.

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