Reviews

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

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mayagh's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

danireys's review against another edition

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4.0

This took me awhile to get through. I stopped reading it and went on to other books but returned when I had more time to devout to it. It's long and it's a slow paced plot but it is endearing. Although I have nothing to relate to Ifem, I still find the emotional side relatable greatly. I may not have loved this book like Half of a Yellow Sun, but I still enjoyed it greatly-- especially the last half.

bibliobrandie's review against another edition

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4.0

I liked this book...I really liked this book. It wasn't an easy read (not just because it was 588 pages either), so it took me a whole month to read (I mean, I also was reading other things). It wasn't easily consumable but I looked forward to reading it every day. I didn't really care for the main character, Ifemelu. She was harsh and judgmental, both towards Americans and then when she returns to Nigera, toward Nigerians. If you don't live up to her standards or what she thinks is right, then you are wrong...or worse. This was the first instance in forever where I enjoyed the story more than the characters; I am such a character driven reader! There is so much in the pages: love and life and disappointments and immigration and insecurity and racism. Sometimes I felt like I was getting a lecture (which I probably need) but since they were in the form of blog posts, they worked for me. Some readers have critiqued that there was too much in this book, that she didn't land on one theme. But I mean, life is about all those things...so it worked for me. I would totally recommend this book (I already have to my daughter) and want to read her other books.

(One thing that I felt unsettled about, what happened to Dike? Was he really okay? I needed to know more about him in the end.)