Things Fall Apart: A Novel (original 1958; edition 1994)

A deceptively simple, masterfully written, emotionally resonant novel. Haters to the left. ( )

Wonderfully detailed and with a feeling of being very broad in scope as well, despite its focus on one main character.

The ending came a bit quickly for me - though we see that events are distressing Okonkwo, I hadn't really felt it strongly enough that his final decision flowed smoothly for me; I think I needed a bit more of a claustrophobic/desperate no-choices-left feeling which I hadn't got. ( )

Things Fall Apart is not an enjoyable read, but, it is the type of book that makes you question values and actions. I can completely understand why so many schools have this on their required reading list. Set in Nigeria, the book first describes pre-colonial life. Some of the customs were horrific by Western standards, but did that justify colonization and imposing western values? Important book to read, but not at all light.


( )

This will be a quickie review because, honestly, I feel kind of indifferent about Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe.

I’ve heard great things, but it just left me thinking the book was kind of moderate.

Basically, it tells the story of a Nigerian family who encounters struggles such as tribal regulations and the onslaught of Christian missionaries.

Things Fall Apart is considered almost a classic, so don’t let my review deter you necessarily.

Thanks for reading,

Rebecca @ Love at First Book ( )

I didn't like this book at all, for a number of reasons.

The protagonist is one of the more crudely drawn and hateful POV characters I've ever run into. He prides himself on his cruelty and lack of compassion. He is a "great man" in the village, primarily because everyone is afraid of him; to my mind, that makes him more a thug than admirable. He is particularly cruel to anyone he has power over, such as his wives and children.

While he is badly drawn, without any sympathetic aspects, none of the other characters are drawn at all. They are cardboard cut-outs. I suppose one can argue that that's how our protag sees them... but there's not even a hint around the edges that he is an unreliable narrator. In fact, I think we're supposed to identify and sympathize with him, appalling though he is!

There's a bit of a plot stuck onto the end, and a brief bit at the beginning (our protag's father was a wastrel, so he naturally chose to become a thug)... and nothing for most of the book. It randomly flits here and there. In its favor- and why I gave it 2 stars instead of 1- some of the traditional stories included briefly, and accounts of the cycle of the year, the food, the gods, and other cultural aspects were intriguing... but they did not make up a plot. I also wish some of them had been handled in a more cohesive way, rather than a tidbit here and another there.

What really amazes me, looking back, is how the author accepted the "great men" and their casual and consistent brutality for much of the book... and then, when more powerful (European) forces came in and made THEM knuckle under, well, THAT was tragic. Now: I do not favor imperialism in any way. I do not think it worked to the benefit of the women and children and lower-ranking men who the "great men" were regularly abusing; they undoubtedly had it even worse when another layer of oppressor was added. But the "great men"? SO tragic when someone beats THEM up, because THEY are supposed to be the ones doing the beating! My sympathy for this perspective is lacking.

In short, while there's some interesting content here, it's not a novel in the way such is usually described, and it requires spending way too much time with a loathsome protag that nonetheless the author seems to venerate. ( )