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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
This was a hard book to read. It is a journey of a man who gives up everything for love, but it does not have a happy ending.
I am editing this after a day. This book stayed with me and the characters had an affect of me that I was not expecting. While I still think this is a hard book to read it is a story that should be told.
I am editing this after a day. This book stayed with me and the characters had an affect of me that I was not expecting. While I still think this is a hard book to read it is a story that should be told.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
is contemporary classic African fiction a genre? that’s what this is
highly recommend but know this is a dense, complex read told in a very unique way
it’s the tie ins of Igbo culture through storytelling, ancestral knowledge, spiritual traditions, language, religion, and proverbs. it’s taking a classic work of literature [the odyssey] and retelling it. it’s the foreshadowing. the pain, the desperate actions, the metaphors, the tragedy. and oh THE ENDING 😫😭
“All those who have been chained and beaten… who have been silenced, raped, shamed, and killed. With all these people, he’d come to share a common fate. They were the minorities of this world whose only recourse was to join this universal orchestra in which all there was to do was cry and wail.”
it’s not a feel good story that’s for sure
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
Chigozie Obioma’s excellent debut, The Fishermen, was Booker Prize shortlisted in 2015 and his second novel follows suit. An Orchestra Of Minorities tells the story of Chinonso, a simple chicken farmer whose life changes one day when he saves the life a young woman, Ndali, who is about to jump from a bridge. When the pair meet again by accident some time later, they fall in love. However Ndali is from a wealthy and influential family, while Chinonso is poor and uneducated, which leads her parents to initially reject him.
After he is humiliated by her brother at a family party, he decides to take the drastic step of selling his farm and house to secure a university place in Cyprus on the advice of an old school friend. But when he arrives there he discovers that he has been utterly duped. This part of the book is based on a true story (which you can find on the Guardian website), and Obioma has some interesting things to say about how Africans are treated when they go overseas.
Chinonso’s story becomes increasingly tragic as he gets ever further from his home and all that he loves. Obioma draws on Igbo cosmology throughout, and the story is narrated by Chinonso’s Chi – his spiritual guardian – who is pleading the case of his “host” (as he calls him) in front of a heavenly tribunal.
This unusual point of view enables Obioma to explore his character’s thoughts and emotions while being able to slip outside of his body at convenient moments to gain a broader perspective. He can even see the goings on in the bizarre spirit world that runs parallel to ours.
This is a story full of humour and pathos, and is fine when it gets going. But the pacing is at times much too slow and the novel could have done with a stronger editorial hand to trim excess description and some of the Chi’s longer invocations.
There is a distinctly Nigerian flavour to the book in terms of the language. The prose is a delight, with fresh metaphors on every page and sprinklings of Igbo proverbs, sayings and beliefs (which may remind the reader of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart). The author is also unapologetic in his use of Nigerian Pidgin English and words and phrases in Igbo.
After he is humiliated by her brother at a family party, he decides to take the drastic step of selling his farm and house to secure a university place in Cyprus on the advice of an old school friend. But when he arrives there he discovers that he has been utterly duped. This part of the book is based on a true story (which you can find on the Guardian website), and Obioma has some interesting things to say about how Africans are treated when they go overseas.
Chinonso’s story becomes increasingly tragic as he gets ever further from his home and all that he loves. Obioma draws on Igbo cosmology throughout, and the story is narrated by Chinonso’s Chi – his spiritual guardian – who is pleading the case of his “host” (as he calls him) in front of a heavenly tribunal.
This unusual point of view enables Obioma to explore his character’s thoughts and emotions while being able to slip outside of his body at convenient moments to gain a broader perspective. He can even see the goings on in the bizarre spirit world that runs parallel to ours.
This is a story full of humour and pathos, and is fine when it gets going. But the pacing is at times much too slow and the novel could have done with a stronger editorial hand to trim excess description and some of the Chi’s longer invocations.
There is a distinctly Nigerian flavour to the book in terms of the language. The prose is a delight, with fresh metaphors on every page and sprinklings of Igbo proverbs, sayings and beliefs (which may remind the reader of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart). The author is also unapologetic in his use of Nigerian Pidgin English and words and phrases in Igbo.
I really enjoyed The Fishermen and excitedly waited for Orchestra of Minorities to be published. I started the audiobook as soon as it was available through my library. Chukwudi Iwuji's passionate narration was stunning.
I admire Obioma's concept. I do not believe the love story upon which this epic is based. It seemed to be an "instalove" of situational romances and not the type of love that would inspire great literature or Chinonso's risks. The female characters were treated very poorly and so much of Nonso's cruelty is bypassed. As a reader, I have little compassion for him even though I realize the novel is designed to make me "root for him." His sense of entitlement is troubling to me. He believes he owns Ndali and that she owes him after what he endures.
I just do not believe the friendship that ensues with the newly devout man, nor do I believe that Chinonso and Ndali were in love. So much of this story is Nonso's, and Ndali barely figures even though she is apparently the impetus for his entire journey. I really did not want to spend time with Chinonso. I wished that his chi and excellent narration had belonged to Ndali and that we had heard her story instead. I have loved books even when I did not like the characters; I really had trouble enjoying this book when I did not respect the protagonist.
I admire Obioma's concept. I do not believe the love story upon which this epic is based. It seemed to be an "instalove" of situational romances and not the type of love that would inspire great literature or Chinonso's risks. The female characters were treated very poorly and so much of Nonso's cruelty is bypassed. As a reader, I have little compassion for him even though I realize the novel is designed to make me "root for him." His sense of entitlement is troubling to me. He believes he owns Ndali and that she owes him after what he endures.
I just do not believe the friendship that ensues with the newly devout man, nor do I believe that Chinonso and Ndali were in love. So much of this story is Nonso's, and Ndali barely figures even though she is apparently the impetus for his entire journey. I really did not want to spend time with Chinonso. I wished that his chi and excellent narration had belonged to Ndali and that we had heard her story instead. I have loved books even when I did not like the characters; I really had trouble enjoying this book when I did not respect the protagonist.
A tragedy in the classical sense, set in Nigeria, framed in Igbo mysticism, narrated by the main character’s chi. What’s not to love? I appreciated the audio version to get a sense of the rhythm of the different languages represented in the book.
There are so many wonderful aspects of this novel but my god it socks you right in the gut.
The gorgeous title refers to a description of chickens as they mourn the death of one of their flock and it is a central theme. Power relations stretched across culture, class, and interpersonal obligation are the main moves but what makes this novel so breathtaking is its narrative point of view. It is told from the perspective of the protagonist's "chi" as it defends him in a mystical court of judgement. Chi is unlike any concept I've come across before. It is sort of a transcendent spirit, consciousness, soul, and double persona all rolled into one and it is stunning to see how this doubling of the main character provides a rich texture to the narrative.
I'm honestly beside myself. Obioma's prose at times melts into the forward progression of the narrative and at others comes out of nowhere with a line of blistering grace. Pieces of my heart snagged on some of those barbs and I just had to leave them there.
The gorgeous title refers to a description of chickens as they mourn the death of one of their flock and it is a central theme. Power relations stretched across culture, class, and interpersonal obligation are the main moves but what makes this novel so breathtaking is its narrative point of view. It is told from the perspective of the protagonist's "chi" as it defends him in a mystical court of judgement. Chi is unlike any concept I've come across before. It is sort of a transcendent spirit, consciousness, soul, and double persona all rolled into one and it is stunning to see how this doubling of the main character provides a rich texture to the narrative.
I'm honestly beside myself. Obioma's prose at times melts into the forward progression of the narrative and at others comes out of nowhere with a line of blistering grace. Pieces of my heart snagged on some of those barbs and I just had to leave them there.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes