The Nigerian edition of The Teller of Secrets by Ghanaian author Bisi Adjapon is forthcoming through Ouida Books on December 14.

The critically acclaimed novel, which was recently re-issued in the US, will now be available to Nigerian readers. We are excited to share the cover of the Nigerian edition, which features the work of Nigerian artist Chidimma Urunwa Ikegwuonu.

The cover art is striking. Warm colors set against a black background makes it eye-catchy and definitely Instagram-ready. The cover is also striking in the ways it speaks to the broad themes of the novel. A Teller of Secret is the story of a Nigerian-Ghanaian girl named Esi who discovers herself in the process of resisting patriarchal expectations and ideals. The cover evokes similar sentiments. A young woman’s face distorted against a splash of color invites the reader to learn more and channels Esi’s evolving sense of herself in a world that seeks to diminish her experiences.

“Misogyny is toxic,” notes Urunwa in a note to Brittle Paper, “spreading across spaces, bleeding women, hammering their dreams and visions  into their heads. Yet, with everything that women see and subjected to, they continue to speak loudly, boldly, and out of turn.” This is certainly one case where the cover art evokes the story in a way that is meaningful for readers.

Congrats to Adjapon for this new edition of her work. Read the publishers description of the book below. We’ll share the buying options when we have the information.

In this stunning debut novel— a tale of self-discovery and feminist reawakening— a feisty Nigerian-Ghanaian girl growing up amid the political upheaval of the late 1960s postcolonial Ghana begins to question the hypocrisy of her patriarchal society, and the restrictions and unrealistic expectations placed on women.

Young Esi Agyekum is the unofficial “secret keeper” of her family, as tight-lipped about her father’s adultery as she is about her half-sisters’ sex lives. But after she is humiliated and punished for her own sexual exploration, Esi begins to question why women’s secrets and men’s secrets bear different consequences. It is the beginning of a journey of discovery that will lead her to unexpected places.

As she navigates her burgeoning womanhood, Esi tries to reconcile her own dreams with her family’s complicated past and troubled present, as well as society’s many double standards that limit her and other women. Against a fraught political climate, Esi fights to carve out her own identity, and learns to manifest her power in surprising and inspiring ways.