The writing style made this a very enjoyable read and made me feel like I was a fly on the wall watching things unfold in Nigeria. It was an interesting take on family matters. I howled with laughter when Temi called them all out with questions. I do believe she might be the sanest of them all. I also really wanted to see if she'd go on a date with Chuka, IK's older brother. I had some faith that he would be somewhat decent!

The multiple POVs were interesting and added depth to each character the more I read. Hearing about all of their relationships kind of made me not want to go near any man. They all sucked but the women put up with it to survive and keep the status quo going.

The overarching focus on societies standards of beauty and the pressure that individuals place on people with unsolicited comments really resonated. I like that the story ended with us not knowing if Temi actually went through with her surgery, although she finally got the stamp of approval. Actually, most of the POVs ended without a solution to their problems, which fit the flow of the story.

This story is a solid 3.5 for me and I'd be interested in hearing it via audiobook so I can truly immerse myself. Thank you so much to HarperVia for the ARC!

3.5 stars rounded up.

I enjoyed this book, the humor sprinkled in around a lot of serious and tough family topics/secrets.

I feel that there were too many POVs, too many time jumps and not enough pages. The book ended in a way, that had me sitting there a bit confused - Like that's it?

Overall, the storyline was good. I enjoyed seeing the different POVs that helped the reader understand the WHY behind each character and why they were who they were at this point in their lives.

I wish it was longer. Had a bit more detail and gave a bit more at the end. I would read another book from this author.

I really enjoyed this book. It was more than I expected. I enjoyed the way Damilare Kuku mirrored many Africans realities with the characters and plot. I will definitely be revisiting the pages more than once. Very hilarious book to help us laugh through the pains of life. Many of us can related to the highly judgmental culture of aunties/uncles. I would easily recommend this book to my friends.

When a novel written and set in Nigeria is so successful that it’s translated into English and sold in the U.S., you know it’s probably one hell of a good book, and Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow is clear evidence that this is true. My thanks go to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the review copy; this book is for sale now.

Our protagonist is Teme (TEE-mee), a young woman fresh out of college who is sure of her next course of action: she must develop a perfect body, starting with her backside. She works and saves her money so that she can have her buttocks enhanced surgically. Everybody loves a woman with a big butt, and once hers is augmented, she can marry anybody she wants. It will be a great investment!

This choice, not surprisingly, blows the roof off her family home. All of the women, her mother, auntie, sister, and others are adamant, and they scheme together, and bicker together, about how to prevent her from carrying out what they perceive to be a dangerous and foolish task. In the process, they reveal their own long held secrets, and also? They are hysterically funny!

The reader should know that the best material isn’t dropped in at the beginning, as is the unfortunate trend. Instead, it starts out fairly serious, and then I find myself snickering a little, and then a little more, and by the end, I am howling! There are quite a number of characters, and not recalling all of them won’t interfere with your enjoyment; however, it’s easier to catch up and also identify certain Nigerian terms that are peppered in, most of which are self-explanatory anyway, if you read digitally. However, because I had fallen behind, I checked out the audio version from the library and followed along as I did my morning exercises, and the audio version is brilliant as well. The lilting Nigerian dialect is mesmerizing!

Although it doesn’t seem like it at first, this novel packs a satisfying feminist punch. I highly recommend it to any reader that has eyes, ears, or both. Don’t miss it!

Absolutely stunning book by Damilare Kuku! This is book is such an accurate depiction of the female struggles in Nigeria, and just how much families can make or break an individual. WOULD 1000% RECOMMEND TO ANYONE INTERESTED!

Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow by Damilare Kuku is a bold and thought-provoking exploration of beauty standards, self-identity, and societal expectations. With sharp humor and keen insight, Kuku challenges norms while creating a story that is both entertaining and deeply reflective. A unique and engaging read for anyone interested in contemporary themes and vibrant storytelling.

It took me a bit to get into, and follow, the story with the multiple POVs, however, I would recommend this book to anyone seeking a good laugh! Mood reading got the best of me, so it wasn't my top pick of the year, however, the comedic insights into current societal norms made me read on.

"For the ones like me who stare at a mirror all day hoping to fix it all with their eyes....... I have broken my mirror, please break yours."

This book was so much more than the title and synopsis suggested and I loved that for memewe meet Temi and her family as she becomes a new adult and want to make a decision about her life that she knows they will not support.

"How do you inform yorn family members that you intend to surgically enlarge your buttocks without receiving a barage of curses?"

On the surface, this is a book about a young lady who wants to undergo a bbl to feel more beautiful and socially accepted, and also gain the ability to get a husband. She has been teased and made to feel inadequate in a society where being shapely is the expected norm. She has also seen the benefits that other girls have received after enhancing their bodies.

On a deeper level, we get to explore more intimate stories and histories of the women in her family and note the similarities of inadequacies they have all experienced in one way of another. At first it was a bit overwhelming getting all the different perspectives, but once I got a handle on it, I loved going back in time to witness the events that impacted each woman's reality.

As usual, this author had me cracking up. The sarcasm is top tier, just like the character's dramatics. I will most definitely read other works that this author puts out in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperVia for the gifted e-arc.

thank you netgalley for the e-arc.i immediately did not like the first person and third person perspective. i thought this was going to be a book about body acceptance or body neutrality and it was, i thought, about just keeping up with the usual beauty standards. there were too many characters you were meant to care about and i ended up not caring much at all.

Well written with both great depth and humor and a strong ending that stays with you. The mature content and language may be too much for some.

I loved this book! I was so excited after I read the short story collection earlier this year to know Damilare was putting a novel out. I read this in one sitting. I love the writing. The humor and love just makes this story so amazing.

I loved this!! Temi is a 20 year old, determined to get a BBL because she knows it will bring her true happiness. Her family on the other hand isn’t as supportive as she would like them to be.

The themes of self love and self acceptance are presented in so many ways throughout the story and it affects on every generation. The author addresses it all with class and a bit of humor. Very well written.

This author is making her way up my list of “G.O.A.T”s. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Funny, and says all the things we never hear. I think the multi-POV was a lot, but in the end it I appreciated all of the characters. 3.5/5 stars. Thanks for including me in the book tour and the ARC!

After finishing her studies at Obafemi Awolowo University, Temi has decided to enhance her backside to attract a man to love her. However, when she tells her mother, older sister & aunties her plan there is an uproar.
Told through a series of vignettes, the family tries to tell Temi she does not need to do this but family secrets, including why Temi’s older sister left their family home & never returned, come out.


I actually gave this a 2.8 but rounded up.

After reading the author's first book, 𝘕𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘓𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘥, I was hoping for something different but this book fell completely flat.

This book felt more like a series of short stories, and I wish it was marketed that way. It also felt a bit all over the place, in my opinion.

The book opens with the funeral of Temi's father, and her sister Ladun returning to the family home after moving and exiling herself to Lagos 5 years prior. It switches between multiple POVs of the women in Temi & Ladun's family; all with multiple timelines.
Some stories kind of didn't really fit in with the gist of the story but I think those stories were written to give more insight to the characters and add some layer of depth to them but it just did not work.

I wish that the author wrote this as a cohesive story because it had potential but it's a no for me.

I took a leap and ventured into the realm of litfic, a place I rarely ever go, simply because of this title and gorgeous cover. I am SO glad I picked this book up because not only was 1 literally lol'ing, it also placed me in some extremely pensive moments.
I enjoyed the asynchronous, multi generational POV chapters, which feels momentous considering my ADHD brain usually struggles with style of storytelling.
But I didn't find myself contused and all of it telt so cohesive. Hassana's POV was absolutely heartbreaking for me, because I feel like her experiences speak to the experiences of women in my own mother's generation.
Temi's voice is absolutely hilarious and lighthearted yet complex enough for readers to empathize with her grief.
At the core of it, this book is a flashlight on generational and historic trauma and how women carry, perpetuate, and suffer from it. I highly recommend this book to readers of diverse women's fiction, folks looking to read Nigerian/Contemporary West African literature, and anyone who identifies as a woman and knows what it is like to carry the burden of the mother wound.

Fuji House of Commotion meets Everyday People in this funny yet serious satire on what it means to be a woman in Nigeria, particularly a skinny one.

I read this in one sitting. It wasn’t what I was expecting. It was raw, it was emotional and took me down memory lane.

OBBMT follows the story of Temi who is hell bent on having surgery to increase the size of her backside. What follows is a whole lot of drama that the reader is not prepared for.

Even though the writing style is the author’s signature style, it did not do this book justice but for me it didn’t take anything away because I was invested in all the family drama/dynamics and the tea spilling.

Even with all the fun and humour laced through, the book explores deep topics, such as body dysmorphic disorder, assault, r*pe and trauma.

I enjoyed how this took me down memory lane from the melodramatic aunties to the comical prophets and alfas to the street slangs to the Yoruba parties to the music, you can’t help but be immersed in the world the author has created.

I don’t know what the author was playing at with that ending but it is open ended and so much liberty has been given to the reader to create their own ending, except maybe a sequel is in the works.

If you love funny yet serious books with some dose of family drama (naija style) then you will enjoy this.

This was definitely a unique read, I enjoyed the comic relief. The polyphonic POV was a bit much at times but I did enjoy each persons story. Overall this story highlights the fad of BBLs and digs into the messages of body image, self-worth, self-acceptance, and family dynamics. It does a great job of capturing the Nigerian culture and gives an insight into the pressures of being a woman.

Damilare has a way of sucking you into a story and keeping you entertained throughout with the humor she provides. I especially love how she gives you the backstory along with connecting it all in the end to Temi doing a check mate 😂😂

🅼🅸🅽🅸 🅱🅾🅾🅺 🆁🅴🆅🅸🅴🆆

🍑 𝙊𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝘽𝙞𝙜 𝘽𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙪𝙢 𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙏𝙤𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬 by Damilare Kuku🍑

▪️ 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: As a Black woman with no big bumbum, I can tell you I relate hard to Témì’s insecurity. In a world where cosmetic procedures are as routine as an eye exam, too many women are trapped in these unrealistic expectations of beauty. I loved how KuKu takes a trivial topic mixes a dose of family drama for a funny, important message about self-love, family, and belonging.

▪️ 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿’𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲: It’s simple—don’t be swayed to alter your body before you’ve even developed and grown as a woman. Never go through with a cosmetic procedure for someone other than yourself. Self love and confidence pushes bullies upside down and flabbergasted. You are enough. You are beautiful. Period.

▪️𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸: Why, yes, of course! Thanks to @everand_us and @harper.audio for audio access. This audiobook is narrated by Weruche Opia. Opia is the narrator behind other great reads like Babalola’s 𝙃𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙚, Onoseta’s 𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙂𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨, and the upcoming novel 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙈𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙇𝙖𝙣𝙙 by Nikki May. I loved every bit of the audiobook—the accent, the passion, and boldness.

▪️𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

▪️𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱: For readers of adult fiction by Nigerian authors, with topics discussing body image and perception, the BBL cultural craze, family drama and sagas, betrayal and lies in marriages, family unity and belonging, and high expectations and beauty standards forced on women and girls.

Big thanks to #partners @coloredpagesbt, @harpervia, and @damilarekuku for the #gifted book and my spot on the tour! Please swipe left on the images to see more about my reading journey.

🏷 #OnlyBigBumbumMattersTomorrowTour #DamilareKuku #ColoredPagesBookTours #gifted #BlackAuthors #bookreview #BooksToRead #Bookish #Bookstagrammer #BookLover #wellreadblackgirl

Thank you Netgalley and Harpervia for the e-Arc. My opinions are being left voluntarily. I immediately read the authors debut book before diving into this book. I had such high expectations. I wanted to love it but for me it was just ok. The writing felt a bit jumpy and a bit rushed. I will try the author again.

3.5/5☆