''Gwendolen'' (United Kingdom title) a 1989

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

n-born writer

Buchi Emecheta Florence Onyebuchi "Buchi" Emecheta (21 July 1944 – 25 January 2017) was a Nigerian-born novelist, based in the UK from 1962, who also wrote plays and an autobiography, as well as works for children. She was the author of more than 20 books, ...

, also known by its United States title ''The Family''. It is her tenth novel.

Plot summary

Gwendolen,

pet name A hypocorism ( or ; from Ancient Greek: (), from (), 'to call by pet names', sometimes also ''hypocoristic'') or pet name is a name used to show affection for a person. It may be a diminutive form of a person's name, such as ''Izzy'' for I ...

June–June, is a young black

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

n girl growing up with her maternal grandmother Naomi. Her African-ancestry parents Winston and Sonia Brillianton emigrate to England when she is still a child. Sonia does not claim her until Gwendolen is 11, paying for her passage to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. In Jamaica Gwendolen is sexually abused by a middle-aged neighbour Uncle Johnny. She tells this secret to her grandmother, who confronts the man and reveals it to the rest of their neighbours, thus bringing shame to Gwendolen. In England Gwendolen attends school and helps take care of her two younger brothers, Ronald and Marcus, and their youngest sister, Cheryl. When her mother goes back to Jamaica for an extended visit to attend to her dead grandmother Naomi, Gwendolen was again sexually abused – this time by her father Winston. She becomes pregnant; however, it is believed that the baby belongs to Emmanuel, Gwendolen's teenaged Greek boyfriend. Gwendolen is institutionalized in a mental hospital after going hysterical, but she tells no one the parentage of her unborn child for fear that her father may be imprisoned. Coincidentally, Winston is killed in a work accident. After giving birth to a healthy daughter, Gwendolen names her "Iyamide", a

Yoruba name A Yorùbá name is a name that is part of a naming tradition that is primarily used by the Yoruba people and Yoruba language-speaking individuals in Benin, Togo, and Nigeria. Naming ceremonies Originally, male Yorùbá children were named on the n ...

meaning "My mother is here". Seeing their resemblance, Sonia then realizes her dead husband is the true father of Gwendolen's child. Postcolonial novels 1989 British novels Novels by Buchi Emecheta Nigerian English-language novels 1989 Nigerian novels HarperCollins books {{postcolonialism-stub