"Things Fall Apart," by Chinua Achebe (Session 2)

🌍 Widely considered the most important and foundational book in modern African literature, Achebe's Things Fall Apart has been translated into over 50 languages and become a mainstay in literature, world history, and African studies curriculums across the globe. With the immensity of such approbations, will our own reading experience live up to the expectations such a work suggests? Let's head to Nigeria and find out. (It's okay if yours doesn't!) 🌍

Publishing Date: 1958
Number of Pages: 215 pages, Anchor Books
Author Nationality: Nigerian
Translation: English, with some Igbo

Remember, please pick only one of today's two sessions. Thank you! Your Zoom invitation will be emailed to you closer to the meeting date.

From Goodreads:

Okonowo is the greatest warrior alive. His fame has spread like a bushfire in West Africa and he is one of the most powerful men of his clan.

But he also has a fiery temper. Determined not to be like his father, he refuses to show weakness to anyone - even if the only way he can master his feelings is with his fists. When outsiders threaten the traditions of his clan, Okonowo takes violent action. Will the great man's dangerous pride eventually destroy him?

A simple story of a "strong man" whose life is dominated by fear and anger, Things Fall Apart is written with remarkable economy and subtle irony. Uniquely and richly African, at the same time it reveals Achebe's keen awareness of the human qualities common to men of all times and places.