Things Fall Apart (Book Review)

In the spirit of achieving my 2024 book goal which includes reading 50 African Novels, I rumbled through my shelf, looking for a hardcover book due for re-reading. Then, I came across the famous African Novel 'Things Fall Apart' and was surprised to still find it among my stack of books.
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe was a book I read when I was eleven. I had always loved reading fiction right from childhood. So yeah, I read it when I was age 11 and coming back to it made me really happy I did. To be honest, if you asked me while I was 15 if I had read the book, I'll definitely say yes even though I didn't remember what it was about. We all have that one book, don't we? Reading the book again, made me experience the thrills and the fun in African fiction.

The book Things Fall Apart written by the famous Chinua Achebe tells the story of Okonkwo, a wrestling champion who is hardworking and strives to show no weakness or fear. He wants to be recognized as completely different from his father, Unoka. By wanting to break free from his father's legacy, he becomes wealthy, courageous, and powerful in his village. As a leader in his village, he becomes the guardian of Ikemefuna, the peace offering between Umuofia and another clan. After Okonkwo begins to grow fond of the boy, the oracle pronounces that the boy must be killed. Okonkwo not wanting to be seen as weak and feminine to the people of Umuofia, after being warned by an elder not to partake in the killing of Ikemefuna, proceeds to strike the killing blow himself.

Shortly after Ikemefuna's death, things begin to go wrong for Okonkwo. He begins to have nightmares and falls into depression. His gun explodes at a gun salute killing ezeudu's (an elder) son at Ezeudu's funeral. He and his family are exiled for seven years to appease the gods.

While on exile, he learns that white men are living in Umuofia intent on introducing Christianity. As more people convert to Christianity, the influence of the white missionaries increases. This leads to a change in government and the introduction of a new governing system. Okonkwo's son Nwoye starts getting curious about the new religion. He decides to leave after being beaten and begins to live independently.

A lot of things happened in this book. I love how the book represents the Igbo-African culture before colonialism. While it doesn't have a lot of action or drama, and the plot moves at a relatively slow pace, the book is filled with tension and emotion, and it explores some important themes such as colonialism and cultural conflict. So while it's not a traditional "thriller", it's still an engaging and thought-provoking read.

I'm really happy I read this book now because it has brought me back into the world of African fiction as I haven't read African fiction in a while. I believe I would definitely achieve my 2024 book goals as I have fallen in love with them already. I would definitely read it again in about a year's time or so.

Header image was created using Canva while the other images seen are screenshots from my e-library.