At the time of the aggression in my country, I spent the nights with fear. The children slept in the room and I put the beds in a dead corner. The windows were covered with tape due to detonations. I treated my fear by reading. I only read comics and nothing more. That was my anti-stress while the planes were passing through the sky at night.
It's time for a pandemic. I don't read comics, I go to the library to get books. That's how I found a writer from Nigeria.
I liked the two books I read and want to recommend them to friends from the platform.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born on September 15, 1977. She is a Nigerian writer whose works range from novels to short stories.
"Purple hibiscus"
The novel was shortlisted for the Orange Award
Summary of the novel:
In Enugu, Nigeria, fifteen-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja live a privileged life. Their father is a rich and respectable businessman, their house is beautiful, they attend exclusive missionary schools. But Cambil's gentle voice reveals that their family life is anything but harmonious. The father, a religious fanatic, imposes excessive expectations on women and children and severely punishes them if they do not reach perfection by a hair.
Kambili and Jaja separate from home for the first time when their beloved and fearless aunt Ifeoma manages to convince her brother to let them visit her. In Aunt Ifeomi's home, a whole new world is revealed to them: shelves full of books, the smell of curries and nuts in the air, the laughter of their relatives since the whole house resounds. Jaja learns to grow flowers, and Kambili falls in love with a young priest. While a military coup threatens to destroy the country, Kambili and Jaja return home changed by the newly acquired freedom. But there they will face the consequences of the desperate act committed by their mother.
"Purple Hibiscus" is a novel full of tragic beauty and touching tension, and its characters are so vivid .that they step out of the pages to interfere with us. Irresistible, tender, and true, this novel is the best literary debut since God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. A subtle study of family life and intricate political events, which stands out in a completely magical way.
Another book I read by the same writer is "Americanah".
Winner of the Orange Award and the National Association of Literary Critics Award for Best Novel.
One of the top ten novels of 2013 according to the New York Times.
Summary of the novel:
Ifemelu and Obinze, teenagers from a high school in Lagos, are in love. Nigeria was under a regime of military dictatorship and everyone who could left the country. Beautiful and self-confident, Ifemelu goes to America to study. Obinze - a quiet, spirited professor's son - hopes to join her. Years later, after numerous life defeats and triumphs, broken relationships, and friendships, Ifemelu achieved success as the author of an influential blog about racial issues in America. Since America did not want to receive Obinze after September 11, he had embarked on a dangerous, illegal life in London, to finally gain the position of a rich man in the new, democratic Nigeria. However, when Ifemelu returns to Nigeria, the passion between her and Obinze and the common love for the homeland will flare up again - which will lead them to the most difficult decisions in life. Bold, mesmerizing, at the same time black-humored and gentle, American is a lavish story that spans three continents and follows numerous characters in today’s world of globalization. This is by far the most powerful and best novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has an exceptional gift to take us to previously unexplored territories. She writes about what others are silent about. That is why the Americanah is no exception. This is not just an ordinary story that takes place on three different continents, but also a perceptive re-examination of the race, identity, and affiliation of Africans and Americans to global landscapes.
An excellent book about the fusion of different cultures, living in the diaspora, and an established critique of stereotypes.
Read Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's books!
Written by @Snezana28
I am a big fan of quality and good books. I'm not the only one and my family is more for a good book than a movie. My husband and I created our own library that contains over 1500 books. Most of it is professional literature, but we still buy and add new titles and everything we like. We definitely attend the Book Fair every year and really follow all the new titles. This novel is wonderful and somehow the writing style is easy to read for all levels as well. Not just for adults. I love novels like that.