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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
Una historia de amor, raza, paises, cultura, descubrimiento, aprendizaje e independencia.
Chimamanda ha resultado ser una autora fantástica, de la que había leído sus dos libritos de feminismo, pero ésta novela me ha sorprendido muchisimo. Real, dulce y amarga en cuanto a la realidad del amor, la clase, y la sociedad. Es la vida misma, te abre los ojos y te hace ver las cosas de forma distinta, es de admirar que un libro haga eso.
El personaje de Ifemelu me ha encantado. Una mujer fuerte con sus inseguridades, real y sincera a un nivel que dice las cosas sin tapujos, sin miedo. Los fragmentos del blog de Ifemelu, son sencillamente una pasada.
Chimamanda ha resultado ser una autora fantástica, de la que había leído sus dos libritos de feminismo, pero ésta novela me ha sorprendido muchisimo. Real, dulce y amarga en cuanto a la realidad del amor, la clase, y la sociedad. Es la vida misma, te abre los ojos y te hace ver las cosas de forma distinta, es de admirar que un libro haga eso.
El personaje de Ifemelu me ha encantado. Una mujer fuerte con sus inseguridades, real y sincera a un nivel que dice las cosas sin tapujos, sin miedo. Los fragmentos del blog de Ifemelu, son sencillamente una pasada.
hopeful
informative
reflective
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
For a book about such important and potentially interesting topics, I found Americana tediously superficial. I'd like to give Adichie the benefit of the doubt and assume that was the point, that she actually thinks that all Nigerian ex-pats who come to America are obsessed with the superficial, but I'm afraid it was unintentional. Is this book just about appearances? Is there a deep way to talk about appearances? I really don't know.
At first I really did like the "brash" way that Ifemelu interacted with the concept of race in America, and Adichie's observations (filtered through the character of Ifemelu) are 99% accurate. She does miss the regionalism of America (that race relations really are different in New York than they are in California or Ohio or Louisiana or...), but I would expect that from anyone who hasn't spent decades traveling North America. Like I said, the topic of race and all of the different ways we Americans interact with it is interesting and important. But, as other reviewers have said, for almost 600 pages the characters never change, and that means that refreshingly-brash becomes irritatingly-juvinile-and-obsessed before long. The characters never realize that just because you are an international traveler doesn't mean that you aren't just as petty and gossipy as the home-town gal who sits on her front porch judging her neighbors all her life. People everywhere can be arrogant, judgmental, and trite. I guess maybe that's the book's "take away." And I suppose even those people fall in love, though because I never felt any depth in Adiechie's characters, and love tends to come from the deep places, I didn't find the love story engaging either.
Sometimes great things ooze out of art unintentionally, but sometimes the process of making the art only exhibits our flaws. I'm afraid Americana falls into the later category for Adichie, over and over and over again. I've been hedging back and forth between ratings all morning, and would give it three stars only for Adiechie's use of language. The dialects come through as genuine, and that's a tricky thing to accomplish. Consider the rating a 2.5.
At first I really did like the "brash" way that Ifemelu interacted with the concept of race in America, and Adichie's observations (filtered through the character of Ifemelu) are 99% accurate. She does miss the regionalism of America (that race relations really are different in New York than they are in California or Ohio or Louisiana or...), but I would expect that from anyone who hasn't spent decades traveling North America. Like I said, the topic of race and all of the different ways we Americans interact with it is interesting and important. But, as other reviewers have said, for almost 600 pages the characters never change, and that means that refreshingly-brash becomes irritatingly-juvinile-and-obsessed before long. The characters never realize that just because you are an international traveler doesn't mean that you aren't just as petty and gossipy as the home-town gal who sits on her front porch judging her neighbors all her life. People everywhere can be arrogant, judgmental, and trite. I guess maybe that's the book's "take away." And I suppose even those people fall in love, though because I never felt any depth in Adiechie's characters, and love tends to come from the deep places, I didn't find the love story engaging either.
Sometimes great things ooze out of art unintentionally, but sometimes the process of making the art only exhibits our flaws. I'm afraid Americana falls into the later category for Adichie, over and over and over again. I've been hedging back and forth between ratings all morning, and would give it three stars only for Adiechie's use of language. The dialects come through as genuine, and that's a tricky thing to accomplish. Consider the rating a 2.5.
Characters 5/5
Plot 5/5
Setting 5/5
Writing 5/5
After reading A Little Life by Hanna Yanagihara, I was so hesitant about reading another literary fiction book. However, Americanah blew me away. Chimamanda's writing was so witty and smart. Her characters were incredibly fleshed out and were so distinct. Even though, this book does not have a strong plot, it does not matter. Ifemelu's witty commentary and her journey into and out of America is just amazing. This book is a masterpiece and a master class in writing. Hot damn! Read this book!
Plot 5/5
Setting 5/5
Writing 5/5
After reading A Little Life by Hanna Yanagihara, I was so hesitant about reading another literary fiction book. However, Americanah blew me away. Chimamanda's writing was so witty and smart. Her characters were incredibly fleshed out and were so distinct. Even though, this book does not have a strong plot, it does not matter. Ifemelu's witty commentary and her journey into and out of America is just amazing. This book is a masterpiece and a master class in writing. Hot damn! Read this book!
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie writes about love, relationships, and multi-culturalism with such maturity. Moreover, I found myself thinking about the other works this novel is in conversation with: The Great Gatsby regarding dreams and the past, the works of Jane Austen regarding social class and love, and Things Fall Apart regarding ambition, colonialism, exile, immigration, return, and the formation and embracing of one's true self. Not to mention the conversations it has with current American discourse on race. Adichie is the novelist for our generation, expressing what these things mean in the 21st century so beautifully.
So why didn't I give this book 4 stars? Honestly? Because Purple Hibiscus was better...and I think this would have made a better story had it been about 150 pages shorter. Several sections of the book seemed to exist only for the author to get something off of her mind - it detracted from the character growth and even muddied some of the social commentary. I'm not saying it was bad (it really wasn't, it was amazing...I'm just saying that it could have been even better with more heartless editing down.
So why didn't I give this book 4 stars? Honestly? Because Purple Hibiscus was better...and I think this would have made a better story had it been about 150 pages shorter. Several sections of the book seemed to exist only for the author to get something off of her mind - it detracted from the character growth and even muddied some of the social commentary. I'm not saying it was bad (it really wasn't, it was amazing...I'm just saying that it could have been even better with more heartless editing down.
Beautiful. Moving. Everything you want from a great book.
This was a unique book that dove deep into the lives of a young immigrant woman in the US who moves back to her home country. It was honest and sad. I think I would like it more if it wasn't so long and didn't take me months to read. The chapters from Ifemelu's perspective were more interesting than Obinze's chapters. Overall, I'd recommend it to others, and I plan to seek more books like it, but the 600 pages felt like 600 pages.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a ferociously talented writer and storyteller. Reading Americanah is not just reading a novel, it is completely immersing yourself into the protagonist Ifemelus life. So much so that during the day when I was not reading this book, I found myself daydreaming about Ifemelu’s Lagos or her America. Prepare to be astonished and relieved that Adichie explains exactly what it’s like to be black in America and how to navigate people who claim they aren’t racist but refuse to see modern day oppression. While truly a beautiful book, I just did not like the main character Ifemelu. I found her condescending, arrogant and sometimes just plain annoying. Don’t let this deter from the novel though, there are plenty of other characters that are beautifully portrayed.
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
une des meilleures lectures de l'année, je ne sais pas expliquer comment, mais l'autrice a le don de donner du sens à toutes ses comparaisons, et sans être précieuse