READING THE WORLD VOL. 4: NIGERIA.

Posted on by writtenbyybb

This post on the Reading World Challenge arrives a month later than it should have for various reasons, but mainly because it took me a month to read the wonderful Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. What can I say, good things take time.

I wasn’t sure about which country I should choose after Japan, but I knew I wanted to read a book from an African or South American country, and since I was gifted this book for my birthday the choice seemed obvious. I usually like to read translated fiction for this section, which this book is not, but since the author and the main characters are Nigerian, and it talks about Nigeria, I thought it would still be a good choice.

I have a lot of thoughts about this book, so let’s dive in!

Book review: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

‘𝑰𝒕 π’”π’†π’†π’Žπ’†π’… 𝒔𝒐 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒍, 𝒕𝒐 π’•π’‚π’π’Œ 𝒕𝒐 π’‰π’Šπ’Ž 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒐𝒅𝒅 π’•π’‰π’Šπ’π’ˆπ’”. 𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕, 𝒔𝒐 𝒔𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’šπ’†π’• 𝒔𝒐 π’„π’π’Žπ’‘π’π’†π’•π’†, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 π’Šπ’π’•π’Šπ’Žπ’‚π’„π’š, π’‡π’“π’Šπ’ˆπ’‰π’•π’†π’π’†π’… 𝒉𝒆𝒓.’

As teenagers Ifemelu and Obinze fell in love, but after graduating in university their paths take different ways. Ifemelu moves to the US; Obinze to the UK. It looks like they are about to start a life of success in an easy, new world, but their new lives won’t be as easy as they thought they would be…

There are so many ways to read this book as people who have read it. It tells numerous stories: a love story; a coming-of-age story; a story about race; a story about loneliness; a story about identity; a story about mental health; a story about loss, about losing someone and about losing yourself, but also about finding. And so, through a slow-building and duelling narrative Adichie takes us on a journey where we will witness a revealing and penetratingly insightful conversation about race.

The story unravels itself smoothly through the pages, with a beautifully and descriptive prose that captured me from the very beginning. I was particularly fascinated by the witty and sharp dialogues, where you could see clearly Ifemelu’s strong character. It was such a joy reading these conversations that I didn’t even notice I was reading; it was as easy as breathing. What reminds me of a conversation I recently had with a bookseller in which he told me that when reading a book, you shouldn’t notice that you are reading, and Adichie achieves just that.

Another aspect that I found truly interesting is the discussion about being an immigrant, and about being African American or American African, I believe that Adichie makes an outstanding job at articulating all these points of view through different characters, an aspect that enriches the plot.  I would also like to mention how she uses the issue of black hair, which at first sight could seem like a simplistic point, as a relevant political and cultural statement.

I can’t write a review on Americanah and not talk about the relationship between the two main characters. Both Ifemelu and Obinze go through a riveting and thought-provoking journey, that Adichie reflects perfectly; the character development is truly spellbinding. I felt like I knew both of them in a very personal level. I specially loved how their way of thinking is presented, how they justify their opinions and how they reached their decisions. The whole process was well-developed, it felt like an organic and insightful way to get to know the characters better. Their relationship is full of chemistry, with electrifying and razor-sharp conversations.

This book is an absolute must read for anyone. It touches so many themes that if you don’t feel identify with any of them, you will surely get to learn something new. Honest, authentic and well-developed are the best words to describe both the plot and the characters.

Utterly brilliant.

‘(…) 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’ƒπ’†π’•π’˜π’†π’†π’ π’•π’‰π’†π’Ž π’”π’Šπ’π’†π’π’„π’† π’ˆπ’“π’†π’˜, 𝒂𝒏 π’‚π’π’„π’Šπ’†π’π’• π’”π’Šπ’π’†π’π’„π’† 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 π’•π’‰π’†π’š 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 π’Œπ’π’†π’˜. 𝑺𝒉𝒆 π’˜π’‚π’” π’Šπ’π’”π’Šπ’…π’† π’•π’‰π’Šπ’” π’”π’Šπ’π’†π’π’„π’† 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒆 π’˜π’‚π’” 𝒔𝒂𝒇𝒆.’

A STORY ABOUT FINDING YOURSELF. A STORY OF RACE.

Nigerian TBR pile:

  • Of This Our Country by various writers (To be published).
  • Stay with Me by Ayọ̀bΓ‘mi AdΓ©bΓ‘yọ̀.
  • Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
  • Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

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