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jesscattley's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and War
demeryg's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I thought this book was fantastic. Though I would say at points it was slow. It took me a moment to fall into the rhythm but once I did it was game over!
I found the topics in this book really educational and relevant to other genocides happening at the hands of USA and Britain. It was informative and also a beautiful story between the mix of characters and their interpersonal relationships.
I found the topics in this book really educational and relevant to other genocides happening at the hands of USA and Britain. It was informative and also a beautiful story between the mix of characters and their interpersonal relationships.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Grief, Gore, Genocide, Colonisation, Xenophobia, War, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Racism, Gun violence, Blood, Violence, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Mass/school shootings, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Slavery, Sexual violence, Rape, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Child death, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, and Death
confirmyourpassword's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A haunting read about what a civil war looks like for people who lived it. Adichie writes about the war in a way that plainly states what happened without outright glorifying or demonizing, and the small details she includes evoke very poignant imagery. The characters were all compelling without being cast as overly good or bad and I could see myself living and dying the same ways they did, with all their virtues and faults. It's profoundly difficult to read because of how dark the context is but I'm really glad I read the novel.
Also special shoutout to the edition I read (ISBN 9781400095209) which is excellently made. The pages are thin and flexible without being fragile and the book feels fantastic to flip through. Super easy to turn the pages and the cover feels good to hold and doesn't attract fingerprints. The cover art is also amazing.
Also special shoutout to the edition I read (ISBN 9781400095209) which is excellently made. The pages are thin and flexible without being fragile and the book feels fantastic to flip through. Super easy to turn the pages and the cover feels good to hold and doesn't attract fingerprints. The cover art is also amazing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Violence, and War
thomasdj's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Moderate: Death
Minor: Death of parent, Violence, Sexual violence, Rape, Racism, Police brutality, Excrement, Colonisation, and Murder
kalobar's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Rape, Violence, War, Sexual assault, Death, and Child death
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Alcoholism, and Blood
Minor: Infertility
dezzella's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.75
I read this book because my best friend's coworker thought I would like it and she was right. This not something I might have picked for myself genre-wise but I really enjoyed it. It reminded me a lot of how I felt reading Michael Ondaatje and Toni Morison in literature classes. The story started out with some interpersonal drama between the characters and took a somber mood toward the end. This does cover events that take place before and during the Nigeria Biafra war. It's an event I didn't know too much about but I felt for the characters during the story. It was a bit emotional hearing about the devastation that was happening but I think it's also very important to be aware and keep learning about these things.
Overall really well written. I liked how things ended and I am glad I tried a book outside my usual genre. If you're looking for historical fiction that has a more literary feel, I recommend this.
Overall really well written. I liked how things ended and I am glad I tried a book outside my usual genre. If you're looking for historical fiction that has a more literary feel, I recommend this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, War, Death, Child death, Violence, Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Injury/Injury detail
mirandahedvik's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Death, Murder, Violence, Rape, War, Genocide, Colonisation, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Child death, and Alcohol
Minor: Excrement, Infidelity, Death of parent, Classism, Vomit, Sexual content, Gun violence, Pregnancy, and Infertility
crazysecondname's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I finished it yesterday and then I needed to sleep before I could write anything about it
and I still don't know how many stars I want to give...
but generally uff
what a book
first off all: I learned thinsg about nigeria I didn't know before and I am very grateful for that
and I did like the characters until they did certain things which made me extremely angry
like we start with odenigbo cheating on olanna like fuck you and then she goes to cheat on him with richard so I hated 2 of the 3 POV characters :))) and also almost stopped reading the book and then luckily had to put it away either way and the next day I was more or less okay again like I still hated it and the worst üart was that olanna went back to odenigbo like girl have some self respect. okay yes it is the 60s but still
so then I only liked ugwu.
and then page 366 happened. by that I liked olanna and richard and odenigbo again more or less. but ugwu? yeah i still hate him for that
and then he died and I was like oh come on. I hopehe suffered
and then he wasn't dead after all and I was like oh come on. but at least he also regretted it?? but still i hated reading about that part and felt it was very unnecessary.
i don't care that it's a war and people did that in reality. I don't want characters in books to do it. especially not when I liked them for 360 pages.
which i why I can't give this book 5 stars, but not giving it 5 stars feels wrong too?????idk man
and I still don't know how many stars I want to give...
but generally uff
what a book
first off all: I learned thinsg about nigeria I didn't know before and I am very grateful for that
and I did like the characters until they did certain things which made me extremely angry
so then I only liked ugwu.
and then page 366 happened. by that I liked olanna and richard and odenigbo again more or less. but ugwu? yeah i still hate him for that
and then he died and I was like oh come on. I hopehe suffered
and then he wasn't dead after all and I was like oh come on. but at least he also regretted it?? but still i hated reading about that part and felt it was very unnecessary.
i don't care that it's a war and people did that in reality. I don't want characters in books to do it. especially not when I liked them for 360 pages.
which i why I can't give this book 5 stars, but not giving it 5 stars feels wrong too?????idk man
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Violence
Moderate: Rape and Infidelity
florenceassetto's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this book was absolutely incredible, honestly one of the most impactful reads i have ever done. i have never connected with characters like i did here and i laughed for them and CRIED for them and hoped for them and it was so powerful. a must read for everyone i would recommend 100 times over
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Genocide, Animal death, Death, Grief, Rape, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Sexual violence, War, and Child death
Moderate: Blood and Colonisation
fionafsw's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Fact and fiction blend, past and present blend, as I read about the Nigerian civil war next to BBC headlines and couldn't stop thinking about the indiscriminate misery and human suffering Israel has unleashed in its current war in Gaza. It is impossible in March 2024 to read about starvation and not be reminded that 1 in 6 children <2 years are acutely malnourished in Gaza, with dozens dying of dehydration and malnutrition. The sheer desperation of a population brought to its knees and then beaten while on the ground translates seamlessly from the late 1960s to this week.
There's not much more I can say about this powerful novel except that Adichie manages to weave humour throughout to help the reader get through the horrors of war and to present something so alien to readers like me who have had the dumb luck of knowing nothing but peacetime through an individual, human lens rather than statistics or political or military manoeuvres. And for readers like me who had no idea about Nigeria, her fantastic writing brought to life every smell, taste, and sensory input.
But where the book really excels, I think, is in describing tension between individuals in the most subtle way that still makes it obvious. Tension (sexual and otherwise) that you could cut with a knife, as if you were there, in the room, as the protagonist. As Richard might say, it's really quite fantastic.
There's not much more I can say about this powerful novel except that Adichie manages to weave humour throughout to help the reader get through the horrors of war and to present something so alien to readers like me who have had the dumb luck of knowing nothing but peacetime through an individual, human lens rather than statistics or political or military manoeuvres. And for readers like me who had no idea about Nigeria, her fantastic writing brought to life every smell, taste, and sensory input.
But where the book really excels, I think, is in describing tension between individuals in the most subtle way that still makes it obvious. Tension (sexual and otherwise) that you could cut with a knife, as if you were there, in the room, as the protagonist. As Richard might say, it's really quite fantastic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Infidelity, Colonisation, Genocide, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Violence, Sexism, Sexual assault, War, Blood, Murder, Police brutality, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Classism and Grief
Minor: Pregnancy