Half of a Yellow Sun
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, 2006
Random House
528 pp.



In Brief
Winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was once heralded as the “21st century daughter” of Chinua Achebe. Now, in her masterly, haunting new novel, she recreates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra’s impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in Nigeria during the 1960s.

With the effortless grace of a natural storyteller, Adichie weaves together the lives of five characters caught up in the extraordinary tumult of the decade. Fifteen-year-old Ugwu is houseboy to Odenigbo, a university professor who sends him to school, and in whose living room Ugwu hears voices full of revolutionary zeal. Odenigbo’s beautiful mistress, Olanna, a sociology teacher, is running away from her parents’ world of wealth and excess; Kainene, her urbane twin, is taking over their father’s business; and Kainene’s English lover, Richard, forms a bridge between their two worlds.

---

Book Club Discussion Questions

1. Ugwu is only thirteen when he begins working as a houseboy for Odenigbo, but he is one of the most intelligent and observant characters in the novel. How well does Ugwu manage the transition from village life to the intellectual and privileged world of his employers?

2. About her attraction to Odenigbo, Olanna thinks, “The intensity had not abated after two years, nor had her awe at his self-assured eccentricities and his fierce moralities” [p. 36]. What is attractive about Odenigbo? How does Adichie poke fun at certain aspects of his character?

4. What are the sources of the distance and distrust between the two sisters?

5. Discuss the differences in social class among her characters. What are the different cultural assumptions—about themselves and others—made by educated Africans like Odenigbo, nouveau riche Africans like Olanna’s parents, uneducated Africans like Odenigbo’s mother, and British expatriates like Richard’s ex-girlfriend Susan?

On reading 'Half of a Yellow Sun', I was nostalgic.

1. I admired Olana - beauty, elegance, kind hearted. If @simonkabz was reading the book, it would remind him of his new catch. Wife material as we guys say.

2. The respect learned friends were held with. Even in Kenya, when you we were young, a professor was position of respect and repute - eradicating ignorance of the masses.

3. Odegnibos empathy for Ukwu. When we were young, there was just more caring for your neighbour. He sets up his houseboy to learn at school, picks up the houseboy's mum for medical treatment, treats him like an equal - How many of us do that any more?

4. Comradeship of learned equals. Maybe you experienced it in high school, college, university or at work. The way Odegnibo seats and debates all manner of issues with peers on evenings; reminds me of Wazua.

5. The pride of Nigerians. Author and learned characters view the 'white man' with amusement. How they do not get Nigeria, the people, and their European's queer mannerisms. Reminded me of the need, for Africans to be proud of their heritage.

I've just completed reading it - it took me just over 2 weeks. A definite sign that I'm now older than my years. Long ago, 5 days would be too long.

1. Half of a Yellow Sun is a sad story and ends sadly. The second half of the book is difficult to read - desolation, poverty, war - didn't know what is hard to picture is also hard to read.

2. Characters are complex and a lesson in not judging just by initial appearances. Twin sisters surprise you in turns; and surprising how all change in desperate times.

3. And man can also be selfish. In all circumstances, all situations, selfish man deeply saddens. Often the innocent ones are the worst off.

Lesson for me: Don't take life for granted

@Muganda,
Now that you malizad reading it bila us even getting ourselves a copy...can i borrow ur book? and return in about 3wks?

@Bkismat
Sasaaa...being a conservationist,am concerned about the numerous trees that have to be felled for each of us to own a personal copy of this book. And with the recent rationing still fresh on my mind,not to mention the Mau crisis,naona afadhali i share a book with my broda Muganda badala ya kuharibu Mau ya huko kwa akina Chinua. So,should we make Chinua richer ama conserve our endangered African forests?

finally gotten a copy of the book. in fact 2 of her books(+ purple hibiscus).hope i can squeeze sometime this weekend to read it between partaking Jeremiah's frothy waters and being a hapless gooner fan (5 years and waiting).though is afraid of reading the text.horrible things happened to the Igbos during the 3 years Biafran war while the rest of the Nigerians did not even notice it.

@bkismat, how far did you go with the weekend reading? Hope the frothies didn't get the better of you. I eagerly await...

Now that you're fully loaded, in the meantime, I beg you allow @digitek1 @leona and I to indulge in a quick Kenyan read of 'Charcoal to Gold'.

@leona, welcome in advance Get your Njenga Karume 'Charcoal to Gold' and I'm sure we'll be among the first peeps to review it...

What what @bkismat, I can't believe I missed it. I'll look for the link.

Lakini share a bit; I just feel like talking about it. It wont take anything away from what you have to say at the end, will it?

What has shocked you so far?
What has made you smile so far?
What has inspired you so far?

@bkismat, aiish this Wazua, sometimes the posts run away somewhere.
VERY VERY TRUE

This comes out clearly in the novel. It's like we know we should polish our shoes everyday, but for one week we want to leave them alone, so we see what happens...

And so the human being is cursed to learn difficult lessons from experience. From the day when Eve and Adam ate the fruit, when they knew so well they shouldn't...


But the author brings it out so well, the tragedy, the cold heartedness, it's the beginning of a difficult part of the book.

Actually I disagree. You often hear the adage 'opposites attract'. And I've heard Chris Hart (psychologist) oft saying people are attracted to those where they have many things in common.

I believe the three are in a 'common circle', but after that, you have to agree that Olana and Odegnibo are opposite in many ways. Not so with Kainene, I think...

---

But even more interesting for me, are insights into how women think, and what attracts men to women - the author after all cannot change her gender - it shows in her writing.