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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie cares about Nigeria and its people and this was evident in this wonderful short story collection. Each story is complete yet you feel it could also form the basis for a longer novel. And out of the twelve stories written, I would happily read a full length novel on eight of the stories, with The Thing Around Your Neck and The Arrangers of Marriage being the standout stories. The author has a way of writing characters that are vivid and flawed, and even in a short story, the characters felt fully fleshed out. This collection gets 4.25 stars from me.
As an african woman, these stories really got to me.. identity, race, the american dream, poverty...
As short as they were; the stories make you go to places, know the characters and convey really strong emotions.
But I have seen some really shallow views about race. I hate african diasporas writing only about the sad reality of africa. I feel like these people who are living comfortably in the developed world are using the misery of Africans as a selling point and that annoys me.
As short as they were; the stories make you go to places, know the characters and convey really strong emotions.
But I have seen some really shallow views about race. I hate african diasporas writing only about the sad reality of africa. I feel like these people who are living comfortably in the developed world are using the misery of Africans as a selling point and that annoys me.
Adichie is a fantastic writer, but I do love her novels and short nonfiction best. Still there were some shining gems in this collection, and all of the stories had important/worthwhile things to communicate.
emotional
fast-paced
I haven't read anything by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie that I haven't enjoyed. I only recently started reading short stories, and hers are beautiful. A really wonderful book.
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Astonishing. In 12 short stories this accomplished Nigerian writer, using her experience and knowledge of Nigerian history and culture as her prism, skillfully encompasses the entirety of being human in a world where how one relates to people can determine happiness or success. Some of the stories are placed in Nigeria, and the authentic detail is marvelous, and some of the stories are of Nigerian immigrants living uneasily in America, uncertain of acceptance by neighbors and employers, while struggling with unfamiliar foods and social customs. All the stories but one are from a woman's standpoint, and in telling their individual stories, the difficulties which are inherent in building bridges to an unseen shore are thoroughly explored. The writing is mature and spare, the author's art of exposing emotion with as few descriptive sentences as necessary is amazing.
Some of my faviorite quotes:
"He used to make me feel that nothing I said was witty enough or sarcastic enough or smart enough. He was always struggling to be different, even when it didn't matter. It was as if he was performing his life instead of living his life."
"How can you love somebody and yet want to manage the amount of happiness that person is allowed?"
"She wanted to interrupt and tell him how unnecessary it was, ths bloodying and binding, this turning faith into a pugilistic exercise; to tell him that life was a struggle with ourselves more than a spear-wielding Satan; that belief was a choice for our conscience always to be sharpened."
"You wanted to write that rich Americans were thin and poor Americans were fat..."
"You did not know that people could simply choose not to go to school, that people could dictate to life. You were used to accepting what life gave, writing down what life dictated."
Some of my faviorite quotes:
"He used to make me feel that nothing I said was witty enough or sarcastic enough or smart enough. He was always struggling to be different, even when it didn't matter. It was as if he was performing his life instead of living his life."
"How can you love somebody and yet want to manage the amount of happiness that person is allowed?"
"She wanted to interrupt and tell him how unnecessary it was, ths bloodying and binding, this turning faith into a pugilistic exercise; to tell him that life was a struggle with ourselves more than a spear-wielding Satan; that belief was a choice for our conscience always to be sharpened."
"You wanted to write that rich Americans were thin and poor Americans were fat..."
"You did not know that people could simply choose not to go to school, that people could dictate to life. You were used to accepting what life gave, writing down what life dictated."