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| Things Fall Apart: A Novel | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 556 reviews)
Sales Rank: 231
Category: Book
Author: Chinua Achebe
Publisher: Anchor
Studio: Anchor
Manufacturer: Anchor
Label: Anchor
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 224
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.6
ISBN: 0385474547
Dewey Decimal Number: 823
EAN: 9780385474542
ASIN: 0385474547
Publication Date: September 1994
Release Date: September 1, 1994
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
This is Chinua Achebe's classic novel, with more than two million copies sold since its first U.S. publication in 1969. Combining a richly African story with the author's keen awareness of the qualities common to all humanity, Achebe here shows that he is "gloriously gifted, with the magic of an ebullient, generous, great talent." -- Nadine Gordimer
Amazon.com Review
One of Chinua Achebe's many achievements in his acclaimed first novel, Things Fall Apart, is his relentlessly unsentimental rendering of Nigerian tribal life before and after the coming of colonialism. First published in 1958, just two years before Nigeria declared independence from Great Britain, the book eschews the obvious temptation of depicting pre-colonial life as a kind of Eden. Instead, Achebe sketches a world in which violence, war, and suffering exist, but are balanced by a strong sense of tradition, ritual, and social coherence. His Ibo protagonist, Okonkwo, is a self-made man. The son of a charming ne'er-do-well, he has worked all his life to overcome his father's weakness and has arrived, finally, at great prosperity and even greater reputation among his fellows in the village of Umuofia. Okonkwo is a champion wrestler, a prosperous farmer, husband to three wives and father to several children. He is also a man who exhibits flaws well-known in Greek tragedy: Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. It was deeper and more intimate than the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic, the fear of the forest, and of the forces of nature, malevolent, red in tooth and claw. Okonkwo's fear was greater than these. It was not external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father. And yet Achebe manages to make this cruel man deeply sympathetic. He is fond of his eldest daughter, and also of Ikemefuna, a young boy sent from another village as compensation for the wrongful death of a young woman from Umuofia. He even begins to feel pride in his eldest son, in whom he has too often seen his own father. Unfortunately, a series of tragic events tests the mettle of this strong man, and it is his fear of weakness that ultimately undoes him. Achebe does not introduce the theme of colonialism until the last 50 pages or so. By then, Okonkwo has lost everything and been driven into exile. And yet, within the traditions of his culture, he still has hope of redemption. The arrival of missionaries in Umuofia, however, followed by representatives of the colonial government, completely disrupts Ibo culture, and in the chasm between old ways and new, Okonkwo is lost forever. Deceptively simple in its prose, Things Fall Apart packs a powerful punch as Achebe holds up the ruin of one proud man to stand for the destruction of an entire culture. --Alix Wilber
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| Customer Reviews: Read 551 more reviews...
 ugh July 2, 2009
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I read this twice for college lit and I can't stand it. It was slightly better the second time around but that didn't make me enjoy it any more. I completely disagree with missionaries coming in and slaughtering cultures in the name of "salvation" so, it's not a fun read for me.
 Best Story I've Ever Read! May 28, 2009
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book has definitely earned the right to be called a CLASSIC! It gives the reader a good image of what it was like to be colonized by foreign powers that have no knowledge of the culture (and I'm using anthropology's definition of culture NOT the mainstream's definition) and have NO interest in learning of it. Also shows how missionaries tend to negatively affect the culture and act as a neo-imperialist institution. Still it's only a fictional account, but it DOES provide a valid POV of colonialism from the colonized people's POV. Hopefully, people can make sense of my ramblings here. lol
Book on Tape May 12, 2009
My daughter used this book on tape when we traveled on spring break in the car for many miles. The item came very quickly and in good condition. Thanks.
Welcome to africa May 9, 2009
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
An excellent work of literature. The book takes you into Africa, in a manner that makes you want to approve of things you are against
Chinua Achebe crafts such a powerful insight into a culture that has made it one of the most distributed novels of our time.
The influence of the British culture on an African society and the demons of a protagonist whose definition of his being, is based on his culture.
A book that has and will continue to impact generations
Read this for class...it was great May 7, 2009
This book is scary. I had to read this last semester. Despite how harsh it is, it was compelling. I loved this book!
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