Imagine being so beautiful that everyone stops to look at you, but inside your own home, you are treated like you don’t even matter. That is exactly what happens to Alesha in this story. She is a tall, fair-skinned girl in her early twenties, the kind of person you would think has everything going for her. But when we first meet her in the morning, she is rushing to get ready for work. She only has one small bottle of oil and a tiny bit of perfume left on her mirror. You can already tell things are not easy for her financially or emotionally. She is trying to be fast because she is already late, but then the drama starts before she can even leave the room.
A younger girl named Basmah, who is only about 13 or 14 years old, walks into the room. Instead of being a normal sister or housemate, she looks at Alesha with so much hate. She literally stands there judging Alesha from head to toe. When Alesha tries to walk past her, Basmah says something really mean. One part of the book says — "I swear if you dare leave this house today, God's punishment will find you." (translated from Hausa). Can you imagine a small girl talking to her elder like that? It shows you right away that Alesha is not respected in that house at all. You can find more stories with this kind of family drama when you download Hausa novels from the best sites.
Alesha is told that "Mommy" is calling her in the living room. Her heart starts beating fast because she knows it’s probably not for anything good. When she gets to the parlor, she says "Assalamu Alaikum" three times, but nobody even answers her. They just ignore her like she is a ghost. This part is so painful to read because you can feel her loneliness. Basmah, the little girl from before, starts telling lies to Mommy. She says Alesha was delaying on purpose and even claims Alesha said bad things about Mommy. The worst part is that Mommy actually believes the little girl over Alesha.
The tension in the room gets really high. There is another girl there named Ummie and a guy named Mansur. Instead of helping Alesha, they all join in to bully her. Mansur even tells Mommy that she is too soft on Alesha. Soft? The woman hasn't even been nice! Then, out of nowhere, Mommy slaps Alesha. Not once, but twice. The book says — "Alesha’s tears started falling like a tap had been turned on." (translated from Hausa). It is so sad because she didn't even do anything wrong. She was just trying to go to her job at the school. This is the kind of writing that Zainab Dodo is known for; she really knows how to make you feel what the character is feeling. If you want to read more books by her, you should check out Hausa novels online.
The whole fight was actually about something as simple as Indomie noodles. Ummie wanted Alesha to cook for her. Even though the house help, Uwani, had already cooked it, Ummie refused to eat it just because she wanted to stress Alesha. Mommy forced Alesha to go back to the kitchen to fry eggs for Ummie, even though Alesha was already very late for work. While in the kitchen, Uwani the maid looks at Alesha with so much pity. She can see Alesha’s face is red from the slaps and her eyes are swollen from crying. Uwani says to her — "Little Hajiya, may God make things easy for you and bring you a way out." (translated from Hausa). This shows that even the servants can see the injustice happening in that house.
After finally serving the spoiled Ummie, Alesha grabs her bag to leave. She sees her "Daddy" coming out of his room, looking all sharp and ready for his own day. She greets him, but there is no warmth there. There are three cars parked in the compound, but do you think anyone offered her a ride? No. Alesha has to walk out of the gate on foot. She checks her bag and realizes she only has 70 Naira. That is not even enough to take her to the school where she works. As she is walking under the sun, her dad’s car drives right past her. He doesn't stop to pick her up or even give her some money for transport. It’s like she is a stranger to him. You really start to wonder what she did to deserve this kind of treatment from her own family. You can follow the rest of her journey on Taskar Novels.
Despite all the pain at home, things change when Alesha gets to her workplace. She works at a private school, and it seems like that is the only place where she finds peace. The moment she walks in, you can see she is a different person. She is a great teacher and everyone there likes her. There is a little girl named Noor at the school who is about six years old. Noor’s story is also very sad because her mother died while giving birth to her. Because of this, Noor is usually very moody and cries a lot at school. But since Alesha started working there, they have formed a very special bond. Noor doesn't like being with anyone else except Alesha.
When Noor sees Alesha that morning, she runs to her with so much joy. They hug and laugh together. It is so beautiful to see how Alesha, who is treated so badly at home, has so much love to give to a motherless child. The other teachers even used to think Alesha was Noor’s real mother because of how much they love each other. This part of the story makes you feel a bit better after all the sadness of the beginning. It shows that even when life is hard, there is always someone out there who will value you for who you are. This is definitely one of the best Hausa novels I have read in a while because of these emotional connections.
As the story goes on, you really start to root for Alesha. You want to know if she will ever escape the bullying from Mommy, Basmah, and Ummie. You want to know why her father is so cold to her. And most importantly, you want to see what happens with her and little Noor. The way Zainab Dodo writes this makes you feel like you are standing right there in the parlor or in the school hallway watching everything happen. The drama is real, the emotions are heavy, and the characters feel like people you might know in real life. It is a story about patience, suffering, and finding love in unexpected places.
Alesha is such a strong character because even after being slapped and insulted, she still goes to work and puts on a smile for her students. She doesn't let her home problems destroy her kindness. But you can tell that she is reaching her breaking point. How much more can one girl take? Every time she walks home, you feel a bit of fear for her because you don't know what kind of trouble Basmah has cooked up for her next. This novel is a real page-turner and you won't want to drop it until you finish it. If you want to read the full story of AZAAD and see how Alesha survives her family, you can get it and many others on Taskar Novels.
