Americanah

Title: Americanah
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Type: Paperback
Read: 14th June - 26th June
Rating: 3/5
Published: 27th February 2014 by Fourth Estate Ltd

As teenagers in Lagos secondary school, Ifemelu and Obinze fall in love. Their Nigeria is under military dictatorship, and people are leaving the country if they can. Ifemelu departs for America to study. She suffers defeats and achieves triumphs, all the while feeling the weight of something she never thought of back home: race. Obinze had hoped to join her, but post 9/11 America will not let him in, and he plunges into undocumented life in Britain.
Years later, Obinze is weathly in a newly democratic Nigeria, while Ifemelu has achieved success as a writer of an eye-opening blog about race in America. When Ifemelu decides to return home, she and Obinze will face the hardest decision of their lives.

This book took me far too long to read and the only reason I can really give for it, which sounds very petty, is the font type. It seemed too small and therefore took me too long to read. But also the story, it just did not keep me interested at times.

The story is about Nigeria and America. What it's like growing up in both and being black in America. Whilst in Nigeria this isn't an issue, during life in America Ifemelu became so aware of how she was black and therefore treated differently. How she fought to be treated as she should be regardless of race. At times I didnt' find Ifemelu all that interesting and she was annoying, everything was so difficult with her. I enjoyed reading about her early days in America, about growing up in Nigeria.

I also enjoyed at times Obinze, who from the early pages was great. But then having never achived his dreams of going to America, being deported from the UK, he became someone who wasn't nice. He seemed very fake in the end and it was almost like, he had money but it wasn't happiness and thats what he needed.

The changing of times, from early days in Nigeria to the changing of UK/US was good. It's a strange insight to what the two were going through, how different the countries really were. But when they both evenutally returned to Nigeria, and met finally, it seemed wrong. They might have been so inlove when younger, but I didnt' buy it the second time around, it seemed forced. Obinze had a whole life, a family away from Ifemelu but totally ripped it apart just because she was back in his life.

My favourite character was Dike. He was great and i just generaly enjoyed reading all scenes with him in. I've never read anything by this author before, so I'm not sure how great the other books are. I just really struggled with this and it's most likely down to the fact this isn't the kind of books i tend to pick up ever.

Go get it from: Amazon UK | Book Depository | Waterstones