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Leafing through ?Half of a Yellow Sun? on the shelf of our university bookshop, I almost didn?t take it. But after settling down on a sofa at home to turn the first page, I just couldn?t drop the novel. What I would have missed!
I first came in contact with Chimamanda?s style in ?Purple Hibiscus?, her maiden novel. I would describe her first book as great writing. But Half of a Yellow Sun is a quantum leap, unveiling additional aspects to the author, evolving down many paths, and exploring ? with admirable comfort - a subject as imposing as the Nigerian civil war. Great writing, and a great story.
Here again Chimamada is the master of delicious detail, first-rate for expressing the most private thoughts and feelings, sometimes with an eerie bent ? like the whole passage where she describes Ugwu lying wounded in a hospital, half dreaming. And in this book the characters take on real flesh and blood; there?s drama.
The plot starts out simply enough, then, slyly, slips into the most unexpected twists. Peaceful nights of wine and intellectual argument in a university community are taken over by days in a bunker with screaming bombs overhead, starvation and stark inhumanity. Twin sisters, who were not the best of friends to begin with, find themselves involved in a love triangle that, paradoxically, along with the war and all the other traumatic experiences that alter their lives, serves to drive them closer.
I?ll not be forgetting the characters in a hurry:
Odenigbo ? Confident, strong and sure of himself. The series of life-changing events that span the book, however, wear him down and leave him exhausted in the end, a husk of his former self.
Olanna ? Strikingly beautiful. Her rich parents expect her to marry a rich suitor to expand the family business. But instead she falls in love with Odenigbo and her whole role in the book seems defined by, and appears to revolve round, him. This love is to lead her down a descending spiral of circumstances and situations ? being cheated upon, living in unaccustomed squalor, carrying a baby around for Odenigbo through the war; a baby that was not born by her. Are her actions borne out of a high sense of steadfastness or low self-esteem?
Kainene ? Olanna?s enigmatic twin sister, blowing perfect smoke-rings from her cigarette and coolly pronouncing judgement on others. When she speaks it is with an acerbic, biting wit. It is interesting that Kainene turned out herself to be the greatest irony of all - she, the most unlikely person, became in the end the strength and rallying point that all the others turned to. And then she disappeared from the scene?suddenly, utterly.
Half of a Yellow Sun is much more than just an enjoyable novel, it carries promise and stature. It is written by a Nigerian, about a Nigerian setting. But its quality will be appreciated by any eyes that encounter it ? black or white, Nigerian or foreign. It is indeed a classic, representing the leading edge of Nigerian literature for our time, the way Chinua Achebe?s ?Things Fall Apart? was during his ? but now maybe even more so.
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Ayodeji Olayemi, May 11, 2007
HALF OF A YELLOW SUNLeafing through ?Half of a Yellow Sun? on the shelf of our university bookshop, I almost didn?t take it. But after settling down on a sofa at home to turn the first page, I just couldn?t drop the novel. What I would have missed!
I first came in contact with Chimamanda?s style in ?Purple Hibiscus?, her maiden novel. I would describe her first book as great writing. But Half of a Yellow Sun is a quantum leap, unveiling additional aspects to the author, evolving down many paths, and exploring ? with admirable comfort - a subject as imposing as the Nigerian civil war. Great writing, and a great story.
Here again Chimamada is the master of delicious detail, first-rate for expressing the most private thoughts and feelings, sometimes with an eerie bent ? like the whole passage where she describes Ugwu lying wounded in a hospital, half dreaming. And in this book the characters take on real flesh and blood; there?s drama.
The plot starts out simply enough, then, slyly, slips into the most unexpected twists. Peaceful nights of wine and intellectual argument in a university community are taken over by days in a bunker with screaming bombs overhead, starvation and stark inhumanity. Twin sisters, who were not the best of friends to begin with, find themselves involved in a love triangle that, paradoxically, along with the war and all the other traumatic experiences that alter their lives, serves to drive them closer.
I?ll not be forgetting the characters in a hurry:
Odenigbo ? Confident, strong and sure of himself. The series of life-changing events that span the book, however, wear him down and leave him exhausted in the end, a husk of his former self.
Olanna ? Strikingly beautiful. Her rich parents expect her to marry a rich suitor to expand the family business. But instead she falls in love with Odenigbo and her whole role in the book seems defined by, and appears to revolve round, him. This love is to lead her down a descending spiral of circumstances and situations ? being cheated upon, living in unaccustomed squalor, carrying a baby around for Odenigbo through the war; a baby that was not born by her. Are her actions borne out of a high sense of steadfastness or low self-esteem?
Kainene ? Olanna?s enigmatic twin sister, blowing perfect smoke-rings from her cigarette and coolly pronouncing judgement on others. When she speaks it is with an acerbic, biting wit. It is interesting that Kainene turned out herself to be the greatest irony of all - she, the most unlikely person, became in the end the strength and rallying point that all the others turned to. And then she disappeared from the scene?suddenly, utterly.
Half of a Yellow Sun is much more than just an enjoyable novel, it carries promise and stature. It is written by a Nigerian, about a Nigerian setting. But its quality will be appreciated by any eyes that encounter it ? black or white, Nigerian or foreign. It is indeed a classic, representing the leading edge of Nigerian literature for our time, the way Chinua Achebe?s ?Things Fall Apart? was during his ? but now maybe even more so.
Terms and Conditions
We welcome your comments and ideas, but we ask that you refrain from:- Obscenity
- Spam
- Illegal content
- Copyrighted material
- Commercial solicitations
By posting your comments you are granting the good people of Powells.com the right (but not the obligation) to make your comments available to others over the Internet, and to copy and distribute your comments via other media, in each case on a royalty free basis. These terms govern the rights and obligations of the person posting comments and Powells.com; there are no intended third party beneficiaries of these terms. Posted comments are subject to monitoring, editing, and removal at any time. Please see our Terms of Use for our complete terms and conditions.Children's Online Privacy Protection Act
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