A Girl is a Body of Water by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

Summary

A Girl Is a Body of Water is a coming-of-age epic centered on Kirabo Nnamiiro, a young girl growing up in 1970s Uganda who is obsessed with finding her missing mother. Raised in the village of Nattetta by her doting grandparents, Kirabo struggles with a “second self” that flies out of her body, which she believes is linked to her mother’s absence. Her search leads her to Nsuuta, a blind “witch” and her grandmother’s lifelong rival, who teaches her about the “original state” of women a time before they were “shrunken” by patriarchy. As Kirabo navigates her teenage years, the narrative moves from the rural traditions of Nattetta to the urban complexities of Kampala and the strict matriarchal environment of a prestigious boarding school, all set against the turbulent backdrop of Idi Amin’s regime. Ultimately, the novel explores themes of feminism (mwenkanonkano), the power of oral tradition, and the intricate, often painful bonds of motherhood and sisterhood.

Plot

The novel is structured into five distinct parts that trace Kirabo’s growth and the history of her family:

• Part 1: The Witch. Twelve-year-old Kirabo lives in Nattetta and experiences out-of-body “flights”. Desperate for information about her mother, she secretly consults Nsuuta, the village witch. Nsuuta claims Kirabo’s flights represent the “original state” of women strong and independent and promises to find her mother if Kirabo listens to her stories. This relationship causes a major rift when Kirabo’s grandmother, Alikisa, discovers the betrayal.
• Part 2: The Bitch. Kirabo moves to Kampala to live with her father, Tom, and his wife, Nnambi. She discovers Nnambi is a jealous stepmother who eventually drives her out of the house after a series of cruel psychological games. During this time, Kirabo realizes that Nnambi is actually her mother’s sister.
• Part 3: Utopia. Kirabo attends St. Theresa’s Girls’ School. The narrative follows her academic struggles and the social dynamics of the school. This section also covers the brutal reality of the liberation war against Idi Amin, including the disappearance of her friend Sio’s father and the arrival of “liberator” soldiers at the school.
• Part 4: When the Villages Were Young. This section is a lengthy flashback to the 1930s and 40s, detailing the childhood friendship between Alikisa and Nsuuta. It explains how they made a pact to marry the same man (Miiro), how education and ambition drove them apart, and how their shared history led to the birth of Kirabo’s father, Tom.
• Part 5: Why Penned Hens Peck Each Other. In 1983, Tom dies in a car accident. His death forces a family reconciliation and the truth about Kirabo’s mother, Nnakku, is finally revealed. Kirabo confronts Nnakku in Jinja, but is rejected once more. The novel ends with the death of Nsuuta and Kirabo finding peace with the “mother she is with” her Aunt Abi and Grandmother Alikisa.

Setting

• Nattetta, Bugerere: A rural Ugandan village where traditional Ganda customs are central. It is described as a lush, fertile area that was once a wilderness before being populated by the Ganda gentry.
• Kampala: The urban capital, representing modernity, European-style wealth, and the dangers of political instability during the 1970s.
• St. Theresa’s Girls’ School (Zigoti): An elite boarding school run by nuns. It serves as a “matriarchy” that protects girls from the outside world while preparing them for high-status careers.
• Jinja: A fading industrial city where Kirabo eventually tracks down her mother.
• Historical Context: The story spans from the colonial era (in flashbacks) to the Idi Amin regime and the 1979 liberation war.

Themes

• Mwenkanonkano (Feminism/Equality): The novel explores different facets of feminism through Nsuuta’s radical oral histories and the modern discussions at St. Theresa’s.
• The “Original State” of Women: Nsuuta teaches Kirabo that women were originally “huge, strong, bold, loud, proud, brave, independent” before society “bred” these traits out of them to make them “shrunken” and submissive.
• Identity and Belonging: Kirabo’s lifelong quest to find her mother is a search for her own origins and a reason for her “split self”.
• The Power of Storytelling: Stories are used to justify dominion, preserve history, and act as a form of resistance.
• Motherhood and “Kweluma”: The novel examines the complex relationships between women. Kweluma is defined as oppressed people turning on each other (like “penned hens pecking each other”) because they cannot bite their oppressor.
• Tradition vs. Modernity: The contrast between Ganda wealth (land and children) and European wealth (cars and gadgets), and how education changes women’s roles.

Characters

Major Characters

• Kirabo Nnamiiro: The heroine; intelligent, stubborn, and gifted with a “second self” that can fly.
• Alikisa (Grandmother/Muka Miiro): Kirabo’s primary caregiver; traditional, stern, yet deeply loving.
• Miiro (Grandfather): A wealthy landowner and school governor who dotes on Kirabo.
• Nsuuta: The blind village “witch” who becomes Kirabo’s mentor and provides her with a feminist history of the Ganda people.
• Tom (Tomusange) Piitu: Kirabo’s father; a successful city man whose early death serves as a catalyst for the final plot developments.
• Sio (Ssekitto) Kabuye: Kirabo’s childhood friend and eventual romantic interest; a self-proclaimed feminist who struggles with his own mistakes.

Minor Characters

• Nnambi: Kirabo’s stepmother, whose insecurity and jealousy drive much of the conflict in the “Bitch” section.
• Aunt Abi (Abisaagi): Tom’s sister and Kirabo’s “Aunt Liberal”; she becomes Kirabo’s primary mother figure in Kampala.
• Aunt YA (Yagala Akuliko): The eldest daughter of Miiro; traditional and strict regarding gender roles.
• Aunt Gayi (Nnaggayi): Miiro’s youngest daughter, who runs away with a man, causing a family scandal.
• Nnakku (Lovinca): Kirabo’s biological mother, who repeatedly rejects her to protect her own social standing.
• Giibwa: Kirabo’s childhood best friend turned rival; she becomes pregnant by Sio.
• Widow Diba (Nnaaba): The village gossip and Alikisa’s contemporary.
• Jjajja Nsangi: Miiro’s formidable sister, who asserts her power within the male-dominated clan.
• Atim: Kirabo’s best friend at St. Theresa’s; ambitious and supportive.
• Jjumba Luninze: Nnakku’s husband.

Literary Devices

• Metaphor: The central metaphor “A girl is a body of water” highlights the changeful, untamable nature of women and their historical connection to the sea in Ganda myth.
• Symbolism:
  • The “Flights”: Represent Kirabo’s yearning for freedom and her connection to the repressed “original state” of women.
  • The Anthill: Symbolizes the “burial” or hiding of unwanted female children or traits.
  • The “Original State”: Symbolizes the lost power of women before patriarchal intervention.
• Frame Story/Oral Tradition: The novel heavily utilizes storytelling as a narrative device. Folklore (such as the story of Luzze and the anthill, or Kintu and Nnambi) is used to mirror and explain real-life character motivations.
• Foreshadowing: Nsuuta’s early prediction that Tom’s family could not “love the mother out of the child” foreshadows Kirabo’s ultimate search.
• Integration of Folklore: The author weaves traditional Ganda creation myths and legends into the modern-day narrative to illustrate the enduring power of cultural stories.