So Long a Letter is a novel written in letter form between West African woman Ramatoulaye Fall and her best friend Aissatou Ba. Ramatoulaye relates details of her life to Aissatou, including discussing her husband's death and, obliquely, the state of women's rights in West Africa. Aissatou has left for America by the time of Ramatoulaye's writing, and Ramatoulaye finds herself jealous and conflicted at her friend's different way of life and feminist leanings.
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