Title: Tuesday’s Child
Author: Mary Ashun
Binding: Paperback
Genre: Non-Fiction, Memoir
Publisher: Kente Publishing
Pages: 211
Publication Date: April 2013
Reason for reading: Having known the author throughout my life, I was given an advance copy by the publishers for a frank review. I was not disappointed. And I know you will not be.
Tuesday’s Child a memoir by Mary Ashun grips you right from the onset and sends you on a remarkable journey to her homeland Ghana where you are given a welcoming dose of all that is authentic, funny, mystical, poignant and spiritual about the Ghanaian culture.

English: Administration block of Achimota School (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
From her spectacular entrance into this world, where her larger than life grandmother featured as if she was the star, to her glorious days of being Nana’s girl, to the often hilarious recounts of her days in Achimota School; interspersed with vivid but brutal historical account of the tumultuous sixties through to the eighties that has your stomach in knots; to her rather lack-luster departure from Ghana to the UK; Mary Ashun tells it all with a frankness that has you awed. She bares it all in her quest to rediscover her roots and to find meaning to her otherwise ordered but incomplete life. In her rediscovery lies her acceptance of the proverb that ‘no matter how hard it rains on the leopard, it cannot wash away her spots.‘
Ashun writes well in narrative that is simple but laced richly with Ghanaian proverbs and sprinkled with doses of native Akan dialect, (translated). Her style of writing holds you spellbound, with each chapter of the book detailing a proverb as the title, reflecting aptly on the contents of that chapter. Her commentary on the eccentricities and way of life of her people is done with lots of humour and affection and this is what endears her as a writer to the reader.
Her deep knowledge and love of her people including family, stands out clearly as the cohesive force in a culture that thrives on the communal. Perhaps, it is this force more than anything that sets the tone of her writing.
The memoir is very well researched, with accurate exposition of historical events. I had the privilege of attending one of the schools with her, Achimota Preparatory School and I can only marvel at her excellent memory and attention to the minutest detail.
I recommend Tuesday’s Child as a must-read for all who want to know about Ghana, the people and history; and all who love to read memoirs. An excerpt can be read here: http://kentepublishing.blogspot.com/.
But meanwhile watch out for the release of this book in April 2013.
About the Author: Mary Ashun is a Ghanaian professor of Chemistry who lives and teaches in Canada. Mistress of the Game is her first novel. She also has Serwaa Akoto’s Diary, and The Adventures of Kobby Badu-Smith, a science fiction for children.
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