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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
dark
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
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
This book is really good, the characters and settings are described so vividly and beautifully that I fell in love with them. I loved the character of Kambili, and how the author explored a variety of themes and issues through her, while also keeping her authentic and realistic.
Lovely writing; intense story. Book Challenge 2022: a book with a color in the title.
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
"when the tea burned my tongue, it burned Papa’s love into me."
Purple Hibiscus is a very interesting exploration of religious oppression and discovering your own identity when held down by an abusive authoritative. It is an brilliant illustration of Stockholm Syndrome as Kambili loves the captor who tortures her in ways she does not even know. The character's in this tale are all very multi faceted with some being easily hated, whilst remaining compelling and others being lovable with many faults.
Many serve to juxtapose Kambili's story with her brother Jaja being in a near identical predicament, but pushing the boundaries of their Papa further than she would ever dare. Her cousins Amaka and Obiora represent a kind of freedom, individuality and joy that she has never been able to experience as they are nurtured by their loving mother. Her Papa Nnukwu represents a person suffering in exchange for their freedom. The women in the story all juxtapose Kambili too. Sisi is a servant to the family only referred to as "that girl" by Papa, she serves the family as Kambili serves their father, both unable to have any other choice. Kambili's mother is also a servant to her father, but experiences a similar Stockholm syndrome to her daughter as she is abused and lies to herself about the great man her husband is. Aunty Ifeoma is free from a service to anything and is able to express herself and feel happiness and joy, at the cost of financial struggle. Ade Coker is rebellious against the authoritative force that oppresses him, until he is killed by that force. Papa too is subject to oppression from the expectations of him as a pious, charitable man. These character's serve to confuse Kambili as she is shown suffering all around her, however, she is too indoctrinated by Papa to find her own identity among all the others that surround her.
The visceral descriptions of Papa's abuse effectively convey the brutality he commits, but also the effect it has on him, as he is seen crying after horribly attacking his family. This creates an image of Papa as somebody so blinded by his belief in an intangible entity and a church that decides how it wants to interpret messages from thousands of years ago, that he cannot even see what he is doing is wrong. Here, we feel a tinge - albeit small - of sympathy for Papa as we see that he too was oppressed by an authority in the Catholic church. He entirely believes that he must harm his family out of love for them and God, he asks his children "why do you love sin" as he proceeds to horrifically torture them. This is a stark contrast to Aunty Ifeoma's discipline of her children as she always explains her punishments and believes in facilitating debate, rather than oppressing other points of view.
The cyclical structure of the novel with Palm Sunday as a focal point creates a sense of inevitability for the reader as we begin to see Jaja and Kambili's freedom in Nsukka, before returning to their father and his abuse. This effectively capture's Kambili's position of helplessness and confusion.
The motif of food and music throughout the novel are used to demonstrate identity and individuality. For the majority of the novel, the only change from day to day for Kambili is the food she will eat thus, a large focus is put on this glimpse at freedom and excitement in her life. Music too demonstrates freedom, the Igbo songs which are reprimanded by Papa and Father Benedict at the start show the freedom of Father Amadi's worship and spirituality at the end. They also serve as a bonding point between Kambili and Amaka, showing how individuality and identity allow Kambili to find happiness and freedom from authority.
My main fault with the book is the ending; so much of the book was slow and detailed before the end which felt rushed and unexplained. Whilst this mirrors Kambili's sense of confusion after her Father's murder, the three year time gap and poorly explained imprisonment of Jaja felt rushed and gave a somewhat underwhelming end to the story. I did think that Papa's continued influence on her and her mother was powerful and an important point that his effect on them was so strong, that even death could not stop it.
Additionally, I strongly disagree with the reviews about the book's "focus on sexual awakening" and the attention drawn to this on the blurb. I think that there is an element of sexual awakening in the book, but this is to serve the theme of identity and freedom and is not a large focus at all.
Overall, this book was a brilliant exploration of freedom, oppression and identity with brilliant writing and convincing characters.
Purple Hibiscus is a very interesting exploration of religious oppression and discovering your own identity when held down by an abusive authoritative. It is an brilliant illustration of Stockholm Syndrome as Kambili loves the captor who tortures her in ways she does not even know. The character's in this tale are all very multi faceted with some being easily hated, whilst remaining compelling and others being lovable with many faults.
Many serve to juxtapose Kambili's story with her brother Jaja being in a near identical predicament, but pushing the boundaries of their Papa further than she would ever dare. Her cousins Amaka and Obiora represent a kind of freedom, individuality and joy that she has never been able to experience as they are nurtured by their loving mother. Her Papa Nnukwu represents a person suffering in exchange for their freedom. The women in the story all juxtapose Kambili too. Sisi is a servant to the family only referred to as "that girl" by Papa, she serves the family as Kambili serves their father, both unable to have any other choice. Kambili's mother is also a servant to her father, but experiences a similar Stockholm syndrome to her daughter as she is abused and lies to herself about the great man her husband is. Aunty Ifeoma is free from a service to anything and is able to express herself and feel happiness and joy, at the cost of financial struggle. Ade Coker is rebellious against the authoritative force that oppresses him, until he is killed by that force. Papa too is subject to oppression from the expectations of him as a pious, charitable man. These character's serve to confuse Kambili as she is shown suffering all around her, however, she is too indoctrinated by Papa to find her own identity among all the others that surround her.
The visceral descriptions of Papa's abuse effectively convey the brutality he commits, but also the effect it has on him, as he is seen crying after horribly attacking his family. This creates an image of Papa as somebody so blinded by his belief in an intangible entity and a church that decides how it wants to interpret messages from thousands of years ago, that he cannot even see what he is doing is wrong. Here, we feel a tinge - albeit small - of sympathy for Papa as we see that he too was oppressed by an authority in the Catholic church. He entirely believes that he must harm his family out of love for them and God, he asks his children "why do you love sin" as he proceeds to horrifically torture them. This is a stark contrast to Aunty Ifeoma's discipline of her children as she always explains her punishments and believes in facilitating debate, rather than oppressing other points of view.
The cyclical structure of the novel with Palm Sunday as a focal point creates a sense of inevitability for the reader as we begin to see Jaja and Kambili's freedom in Nsukka, before returning to their father and his abuse. This effectively capture's Kambili's position of helplessness and confusion.
The motif of food and music throughout the novel are used to demonstrate identity and individuality. For the majority of the novel, the only change from day to day for Kambili is the food she will eat thus, a large focus is put on this glimpse at freedom and excitement in her life. Music too demonstrates freedom, the Igbo songs which are reprimanded by Papa and Father Benedict at the start show the freedom of Father Amadi's worship and spirituality at the end. They also serve as a bonding point between Kambili and Amaka, showing how individuality and identity allow Kambili to find happiness and freedom from authority.
My main fault with the book is the ending; so much of the book was slow and detailed before the end which felt rushed and unexplained. Whilst this mirrors Kambili's sense of confusion after her Father's murder, the three year time gap and poorly explained imprisonment of Jaja felt rushed and gave a somewhat underwhelming end to the story. I did think that Papa's continued influence on her and her mother was powerful and an important point that his effect on them was so strong, that even death could not stop it.
Additionally, I strongly disagree with the reviews about the book's "focus on sexual awakening" and the attention drawn to this on the blurb. I think that there is an element of sexual awakening in the book, but this is to serve the theme of identity and freedom and is not a large focus at all.
Overall, this book was a brilliant exploration of freedom, oppression and identity with brilliant writing and convincing characters.
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
reflective
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse