Death, especially murder, doesn’t just happen. It isn’t an isolated incident, and a reason is needed to soothe the pain, explain the loss, and fill the empty space left behind. It’s hard to understand when the person who pulled the trigger made the vow, till death do us part. In Mubanga Kalimamukwento’s second novel, The Shipikisha Club, Sali is accused of killing her husband, Kasunga. Without witnesses, the only question is, “Why?”
The novel opens with a shadow of death and quickly shifts to a high-tension courtroom, where Sali faces charges. The narration switches between three perspectives: Sali, her daughter Ntashé, and Peggy, her mother—in alternating timelines. Starting with an affair with a married man, a subsequent pregnancy that could tarnish her parents’ reputation, and Kasunga’s willing acceptance to cover her indiscretions, Mubanga carefully constructs the ingredients for a compelling read.
The story delves into universal themes of greed, lust, love, abuse, and shame, layered with religious expectations and Zambian cultural norms. It highlights how society expects women to pursue marriage and motherhood to be seen as complete. Peggy asks, “… didn’t she pour all of herself into this one, teaching her everything there was to teach about how to be a woman in a world that wasn’t shaped to hold the tenderness and strength of womanhood?” The question was how far Sali was willing to bend.
Shipikisha Club is a term popular in Zambia, often used in the context of marriage and loosely translated as “endurance”. It symbolises an imaginary form of bondage, unlike Sali, who was confined within the prison walls. Mubanga uses this theme to depict how the women in the novel sacrificed, contorted, pretended, and diminished themselves to survive each day. To present a well-curated image that their married life was blissful. At the same time, it takes skill and strength to navigate the societal boulders of expectation on a married woman.
Vivid descriptions, witty and sharp dialogue, and the right dose of mystery to uncover what happened that fateful night chronicle the events leading up to it. The Shipikisha Club also serves as a cultural masterclass, offering insight into the Zambian marriage customs and traditions that soon-to-be-wed couples typically experience.
Each chapter starts with either a Bible verse or a Bemba proverb, setting the tone for what follows. The sections are a snapshot in time, with no wasted words or loose sentences. The language, sprinkled with Bemba idioms and expressions, delivers the punch it is meant to. Mubanga strips it all bare, sharing what is often spoken of in hushed tones; as a result, the book contains some explicit material and strong language. It maintains a steady pace, allowing the reader to absorb each word, ruminate on its meaning and context before turning the page to uncover the next piece of the puzzle. The distinct characters reveal a piece of a larger mosaic that brings everything together toward a climactic ending.
Although the book’s premise centres on gender-based violence, Kalimamukwento captures the stories of people we know—mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, and neighbours. The men in the novel might be seen through the stereotypical lens of emotionless and knuckle-bashing womanisers. However, in between the lines, they are simply products of a system that has choked them and frowns at any hint of inadequacy. Good men exist. Throughout the book, the loudest voice was the silence: the quiet assumptions, unspoken resentment, and muted regrets.
People don’t pay to join The Shipikisha Club; marriage makes them members. When two flawed human beings come together, it doesn’t always lead to happiness. Sometimes, there is chaos, and it suffocates. The Shipikisha Club by Mubanga Kalimumakwento is an invitation to glimpse what goes on in this exclusive club.
Thank you to Dzanc Books for the Advance Reader’s Copy of The Shipikisha Club by Mubanga Kalimamukwento
The Shipikisha Club (forthcoming 10 March 2026)
334 pages
Publisher: Dzanc Books
Available on Amazon for pre-order
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