Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
This touching tale which centres around Okonkwo, leader of a village in Nigeria. The story telling was poignant and even terse in parts. Achebe had an incredibly ability to transport the reader to the time and place of his choosing. This is exemplified time and time again in Things Fall Apart.
You are there with Okonkwo as he travels to see the Oracle. You are right beside him during his exile. You can feel the dust in your hands as they clear trees and plant crops.
The choice of words was one of the key things that stood out to me when reading this. You got a sense of how the different characters spoke and this in turn gave you a real sense of who they are. There is almost no phonetic speech, which I often find off-putting. However there is a great scene where its use sets the night alive with the calls to their gods.
Was it the right choice?
It is these choices of when to use writing techniques, like phonetic speech, and when not to that set this novel apart. In places the story is full of flowing descriptions. In others it is bare. All of these choices are made by a master of his craft and lead to brilliant and engaging story.
Okonkwo’s tale is one of growth, of passing through the rites into adulthood a leadership. It also is a tale of a clash of cultures. Both of these aspects a tied together beautifully.
I have very little – read no – knowledge of this time in Africa. Achede makes the content accessible and easy to understand. This makes the problems that the characters face real an understandable. I was able to learn about the culture and what the missionaries mean to our hero. A fantastic and easy read. Highly recommended if you would like an insight into Nigerian culture.
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