A review by haddyreadshere
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


This book tugged at my heartstrings. It was deeply emotional for me, especially towards the end.

At first, I thought Okonkwo, the main character, was just brash and angry. But as I kept reading, I began to understand him more. I realized that he was driven by fear. He was afraid of being seen as less of a man. And because he didn’t have an example of courageous, balanced manhood in his father, he chased after what looked like strength—violence, war, domination, amassing material wealth, beating his wives. That fear eventually led him to his grave.

I believe if Okonkwo had approached life with more calm and less fear, he would have found peace. His default response to any challenge was violence. He didn’t believe in making peace. And he tried to pass that ideology down to his children—especially his first son, Nwoye.

But Nwoye was different. He was curious. He questioned tradition: Why do we discard twins? Why must we follow these customs blindly? He wanted answers. And while his father’s world didn’t provide them, Christianity, in some way, did.

And reading this book again now, as an adult, the part that really hit me was the role of colonialism and how oppressive it was. Yes, some customs—like killing twins or isolating the sick—needed to be questioned and changed. But the way the white man went about it? It made me so angry. 

And I don’t think it was Ikemefuna’s death that was Okonkwo’s undoing—it was his fear. That deep fear of not being seen as a man.

Overall, this was a really good read. It made me feel so much—grief, anger, empathy. I’d definitely recommend it. I absolutely recommend it.
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