Book #4 - Things Fall Apart

First school book on my list. This was read for my World Literature in English class, and I actually did enjoy it. I was a bit nervous to start it after we read some African poetry that just went completely over my head, but once I got the hang of Achebe's style of bouncing around with flashbacks, it just flowed. I like that there's no grandiose language or themes being crammed down the reader's throat, no "I am teaching you a moral lesson here." It is easy to become lost in the world of the story because Achebe doesn't break the fourth wall to explain things to the readers. We are left to wonder about translations (until we discover there's a glossary in the back *headdesk*), and figure out for ourselves exactly what things like the egwugwu are. We see them in action but are not outright told who they are or why they're there. Initially that was a point that bothered me, because I was like, "gah, what the heck is this!" but since I needed to read a certain number of chapters for class the next day, I kept turning pages, and eventually I liked that the rhythm of the story was never interrupted for cumbersome exposition.

The story follows a man named Okonkwo, a very overcompensating manly tribesman living in Nigeria. We watch him through interactions with his family and neighbors, and see some of the customs of his village. There doesn't seem to be much of an overarching plot, until nearish the end, when *dramatic chords* white men show up and things... well, they fall apart for Okonkwo. It's not a spoiler because it's the title, so there you go.

Title: Things Fall Apart
Author: Chinua Achebe
Pages: 209

4 / 24 books. 17% done!

Woo, and I'm way farther ahead than I was last year.

Book #4 - Things Fall Apart

First school book on my list. This was read for my World Literature in English class, and I actually did enjoy it. I was a bit nervous to start it after we read some African poetry that just went completely over my head, but once I got the hang of Achebe's style of bouncing around with flashbacks, it just flowed. I like that there's no grandiose language or themes being crammed down the reader's throat, no "I am teaching you a moral lesson here." It is easy to become lost in the world of the story because Achebe doesn't break the fourth wall to explain things to the readers. We are left to wonder about translations (until we discover there's a glossary in the back *headdesk*), and figure out for ourselves exactly what things like the egwugwu are. We see them in action but are not outright told who they are or why they're there. Initially that was a point that bothered me, because I was like, "gah, what the heck is this!" but since I needed to read a certain number of chapters for class the next day, I kept turning pages, and eventually I liked that the rhythm of the story was never interrupted for cumbersome exposition.

The story follows a man named Okonkwo, a very overcompensating manly tribesman living in Nigeria. We watch him through interactions with his family and neighbors, and see some of the customs of his village. There doesn't seem to be much of an overarching plot, until nearish the end, when *dramatic chords* white men show up and things... well, they fall apart for Okonkwo. It's not a spoiler because it's the title, so there you go.

Title: Things Fall Apart
Author: Chinua Achebe
Pages: 209

4 / 24 books. 17% done!

Woo, and I'm way farther ahead than I was last year.