Chinua Achebe

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Wed, 2003-01-15 21:03

Chinua Achebe

Achebe is one of my favourite writers, if not my favourite. He is one of the few writers who can at times make me put the book down, breath in for a moment and then say "oh my god this is really f***ing good"

I studied 'Things Fall Apart' at A-level, which was pretty darn good. Then, at uni, I happened across a second hand copy of 'Anthills of the Savannah', and I was extremely impressed. 'Man of the People' is really excellent as well; 'Arrow of God', while perhaps not quite as good, is definitely worth a read. I am still trying to get a hold of his poetry collection.

Sorry just to rant on saying 'this book was good, and this book was good'; I haven't found a way to put what I like about his work into words.

Has anybody else here read any Achebe?

Mon, 2005-03-14 07:25

Preety

I want to get a briefing about portrayal of colonialism in No Longer At Ease

Mon, 2005-03-14 16:44

sally

is this the same person who wrote "Refugee Mother and child" ? I think yes well i liked that poem but haven't read any of his stories but i would say that this poem was much better than the other ones i was doing in school. [%sig%]

Mon, 2003-09-08 20:50

Steven

His novels are excellent. He has the talent of a Nadine Gordimor... and it is rather sad that he is not given a nobel prize, but I would argue that there is great seduction in Nadine Gordimor's writing, the seduction of the reality of life into the semiotic of personality which transfuses her work with the halo of spirituality. She's a very spiritual woman as I see it. I personally like the writings of another African writer who deals more nakedly with the issues going on in Africa. He is also Nigerian I believe but I have forgotten his name. He interfuses myth, desire, and the current reality in Africa with such daring and force that his short stories leave me breathless.

Mon, 2003-01-20 11:06

andrew o'donnell

Sounds interesting.. where's he from? Is this prose, you're refering to? (Things Fall Apart)

Sun, 2003-02-09 16:06

Dentalplan

Chinua Achebe is a Nigerian writer, and often referred to as Africa's greatest novellist. As such, he writes mainly novels (o: but he has brought out one poetry collection, 'Beware Soul Brother' which is unfortunately out of print (luckily I was able to get a copy out the library). His first three novels ('Things Fall Apart', 'Arrow of God' and 'No Longer at Ease') are about the colonisation of Nigeria, and its effects on Igbo culture, broadly speaking (that is, that is the central theme that unites the three books.) I haven't read 'No Longer at Ease', but as for the other two, they are very good, though my preference is for 'Things Fall Apart'. His forth and fifth novels ('A Man of the People' and 'Anthills of the Savannah') deal primarily with the theme of political corruption. 'A Man of the People' is his shortest and most accessible novel, an often humourous first person narrative. 'Anthills of the Savannah' is a little more experimental, and I think I would rate it as my favourite of Achebe's.. just... I really need to give it another read.

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