Things Fall Apart worn Cover edition Paperback – January 1, 1994

This is not so much a review of the book as it is a brief commentary of its personal and broader relevance. As a Nigerian-American, I can honestly say that Things Fall Apart is one of the most important books I've ever read. I read it in secondary school in Nigeria 30 years ago and most of it was lost on me because we were forced to read, memorize, and regurgitate its contents to pass exams. We did not have much have a chance to extract and discuss the WEALTH of knowledge that Chinua Achebe unfurls in this book.Fast-forward to last week in the US when something kept telling me to order another copy (I've lived in a few countries, including Nigeria, and always feel compelled to buy this book anywhere I live but never find time to read it). So, I ordered yet another hard copy and then saw Amazon's Kindle deal while the first copy was in transit in the post. It was a no-brainer -- the Kindle version would solve my traveling woes! Moreover, I devoured it in 3 days! Then I discussed certain passages with my parents whose grandparents would have been Okonkwo's peers and this precipitated priceless family discussions, taking my parents back to their respective childhoods.Having been born in the US, I can count the number of times that we've tried to have similar discussions that ended up falling flat. I believe my re-reading of Achebe's book, plus my mother's grand decision to transplant me from the US and enroll me in a Nigerian secondary school decades ago, FINALLY helped us share and construct parts of our family's historical story's center that had never really had the chance to come together -- not to talk of fall apart.The novel also elicited compassion from me that gets buried (far) beneath the frustration at present-day Nigeria, which I've recently lived in and visit often. In Things Fall Apart, Achebe describes this functional society -- sure, without the technological advances of iron horses and Western education -- but functional enough to maintain law and order, as well as family and community (kinship) structures. My parents say that they remember some of those days and now I understand the heartbreak and ambivalence they must feel when they look at Nigeria today.I also finished the book with more compassion towards pre-colonial worshippers of traditional or cultural gods. Achebe cleverly shows that it wasn't much different from Christianity other than the multiplicity of mediator gods and the exclusion of certain groups and the sad, unfortunate mistreatment of twins. (My parents have a family friend who was an only child because his mother had given birth to FOUR sets of twins -- all of whom were you-know-what). As a Christian, I can easily rattle off the vast differences but sometimes it's helpful to look at similarities, so you can understand where people are coming from and why they see things the way they do, and therefore do the things they do. The Igbos were just one ethnic groups in Nigeria that had to make decisions and adjustments to literally abandon who they were. Never mind how many other groups had to do the same across the entire country and continent!Finally, I was struck by how certain elements of this 60 year-old novel foreshadows aspects of present-day Nigeria. In particular, the part about the colonial government messengers and 250 cowries had me howling out loud! Obviously, I don't want to give it away, so please feel free to share your thoughts on this aspect after you've read the book!While I understand Chimamanda Adichie's warning not to heed to the narrative of a single story, Things Fall Apart is one story that I am proud to say represents an aspect of my heritage superbly. Achebe should have won the Nobel Peace Prize for Literature because of the understanding Things Fall Apart presumably fostered between colonized peoples and their colonizers, between colonized people in general, and between people around the world in a much broader sense -- and still does.In short: I simply adore this book and hope you do, too!

It is well written, had to read 3/4 of the book before anything actually happened as it pertains to the title of the book. Ok book.

I love the way the author tells the story. I find the events in the novel very interesting and to see how life was back then, and the way that colonial influence had on these clans, was a lot. Book taught me a lot about life back then and people coming in overtaking other people‘s houses.

I'm so glad I read this for a class I took and that I got a chance to read it a second time for a book club... because I seriously doubt I would have read as closely and appreciated it as much if I hadn't. It reads deceptively simple and is even written in the style of a fable; however, all the African language and names here make it much harder to understand and remember who's who (luckily it comes with a glossary-- I also HIGHLY suggest reading it with an audio on so you can hear the pronunciation of words as you read). The people also use a lot of proverbs and African idioms in their communications. These things can be very confusing, I know it.But given some extra focus (take it as a study), you will come away from this novel with some important history on European colonialism, Africa, and an understanding of how a culture can literally fall apart.Set in the country of Nigeria on the continent of Africa during the 1890's... Nigerian author Chinua Achebe (who recently passed in 2013) introduces us to the fictional village of Umuofia to give us the close up dynamics of how a clan functions before and after British colonialism. We meet the Ibo/Igbo tribe who are based on a real people.The story follows the rise and fall of Okonkwo, a wrestling champion who rose above the idleness of his disgraced father to become one of the most powerful and feared men in his village. But Okonkwo is a man with tragic and fatal flaws (he's a violent bully and obsessively fears being like his father). His 7-year exile happens at the same time British missionaries come in spreading Christianity. The book is divided in three parts: essentially, pre-exile, exile, and the return.This gives us a chance to see the village thriving before the missionaries, how things change when they show up... and how the culture slowly diminishes once they are solidly in. We see how colonialism can infiltrate a culture by embracing its weakest links... giving voice, respect, and humanity to the unwanted and shunned. These aren't bad things, of course... I was happy to see some of these characters treated humanely by the missionaries. Inevitably this is not about assimilation or cultures working together and understanding each other and growing together, but about the British stamping out customs, traditions, and people in power so that their own culture and religion might thrive. Okonkwo is a cultural purist who simply cannot adapt to his changing world. He embodies the fall of what once was.To best appreciate this book, it's best to review the history around its publication. It was published in 1958 and Nigeria gained independence from Britain in 1960. Hence it is a very timely book. Moreover, it is unique in that it is written from the point of view of an African rather than the typical white colonizer who usually told these stories. This meant to give voice and humanize a people long viewed as "savages" who must be converted or wiped out.Put it on your to-read list and take the time to understand it as it gives you a powerful window into African history... it deserves more than a casual read.

The Nigerian words & names were hard to follow so it took me longer than usual to finish the book.It was a decent story, but I don’t understand what it is considered a “classic”.