Reviews

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

diced_mangos's review

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A book with a lot to take in and think about.

My favorite part was the narrative structure and language use in the story as well as the portrayal of Igbo culture as rich, beautiful, and complex as opposed to the typical western portrayal of African culture as primitive.

A rollercoaster of a read. Definitely worth everyone’s time

jenny_hedberg's review against another edition

4.0

EDIT 27/12: How could I have rated this three stars?! I really like this novel and I think that re-reading it and discussing it so much in class (it was one of the four novels my IB English class read for Paper 2) made me like it even more. I'm going to have to write a proper review for this one day.

sadie_scout's review

3.0

good just not my style 

livvvvvvvvvvv6's review

adventurous dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

avabooks3314's review

4.0

school book not that bad of a read

syd_a's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 stars

ceco_'s review

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I think this is a good book that found me at the wrong time. It requires a great deal more attention than I gave to it, and more patience than I had. Because there's no real plot per se, you follow the life of Okonkwo, a fearsome warrior who faces various internal (

eg deep seated instinctual repulsion of anything 'feminine' or 'weak' borne out of his frustrations with his own father

) and external conflicts,

like his exile and, finally, missionaries' encroachment of his fatherland and all that he holds dear

. 

There were some characters I cared for and many I didn't. 

What I do commend this book for though is that it gave me a snapshot of a life, customs and belief systems far removed from my own. Especially the animal-centric mythologies I'd never heard of before. Really enjoyed those. I think it also executes its ending and overall political message well. 

Rating breakdown:
Plot: 3
Characters: 3
Inisight: 4
Political commentary: 4

ryangogan33's review

adventurous dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

zuzi's review against another edition

dark informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

bsolarz's review against another edition

3.0

This book was a book that we analyzed (and re-analyzed) in class but I didn't find it too bad for a school book. It was interesting but what got me were the names. I found it confusing trying to remember who was who because all the names looked similar to me. I found myself rereading a lot of it.