Two parallel women's lives are contrasted: dissatisfied white woman Audrey and poor black girl Matilda who copes with the mixed blessings of being chosen as a second wife by a rich black lawyer. I became exasperated with the whingeing Audrey very quickly, but enjoyed Matilda's resilience and courage.
It would quite simply never have occurred to her to buy fresh fish without prodding it, smoked fish without tasting it, tomatoes without pinching them to see if they were firm and fresh pineapples without sampling the sweet juiciness of the fruit that had been cut to entice customers, or rice without picking up a handful and allowing it to fall through her fingers so she could see whether the proportion of weevils to grain was acceptable.
