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A review by saqib_292
The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born by Ayi Kwei Armah
2.0
Oof. I was so, so excited to read this book because:
1) it's by a Ghanaian author writing in a freshly post-colonial reality
2) it's a scathing critique of Nkrumah's Ghana
3) everybody says that this is up there with Achebe's 'Things Fall Apart' as one of the best African novels ever.
I was quite disappointed. It's interesting, don't get me wrong. The repeated images of dirt, filth, dilapidation and overall "shit" (for want of a more direct term) as a sustained metaphor to drive home the moral corruption of Ghana under Nkrumah is fantastic. It's just such a slog to read. I really did not care for any of the characters. I didn't care about the plot. The writing is beautifully descriptive at times, but then wades through dense commentary that makes the reading experience so staccato and draining.
Rating: 2.1/5
1) it's by a Ghanaian author writing in a freshly post-colonial reality
2) it's a scathing critique of Nkrumah's Ghana
3) everybody says that this is up there with Achebe's 'Things Fall Apart' as one of the best African novels ever.
I was quite disappointed. It's interesting, don't get me wrong. The repeated images of dirt, filth, dilapidation and overall "shit" (for want of a more direct term) as a sustained metaphor to drive home the moral corruption of Ghana under Nkrumah is fantastic. It's just such a slog to read. I really did not care for any of the characters. I didn't care about the plot. The writing is beautifully descriptive at times, but then wades through dense commentary that makes the reading experience so staccato and draining.
Rating: 2.1/5