CHAPTER 2
Akosua
I adore my class teacher. Her name is Miss Priscilla Mensah. I think Priscilla is a beautiful name, as beautiful as its owner. My name is Akosua. How dull! One in every seven girls in Ghana is called Akosua. Except in the North, that is; and perhaps amongst the Ewes, too, and the Gas. But amongst us Akans, it’s just seven names for girls and seven for boys. There are four girls called Akosua in my class, so Miss Mensah has to use our surnames to distinguish us. I am Akosua Annan. The other girls call me AA. When Miss Mensah calls me to the front of the class, they all whisper, “AA, AA,” until she raises her eyes and stares them down, searching for the culprits. Then they pretend that they are concentrating on the open books on their desks. The cowards! And I? I put on my
