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Things Fall Apart Paperback – Unabridged, September 1, 1994

by Chinua Achebe (Author)

1,699 customer reviews

in African Literature

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Things Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe's critically acclaimed African Trilogy. It is a classic narrative about Africa's cataclysmic encounter with Europe as it establishes a colonial presence on the continent. Told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior of Umuofia in the late 1800s, Things Fall Apart explores one man's futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order.

With more than 20 million copies sold and translated into fifty-seven languages, Things Fall Apart provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.

Things Fall Apart [Unabridged]

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

One of Chinua Achebe's many achievements in his acclaimed first novel, Things Fall Apart, is his relentlessly unsentimental rendering of Nigerian tribal life before and after the coming of colonialism. First published in 1958, just two years before Nigeria declared independence from Great Britain, the book eschews the obvious temptation of depicting pre-colonial life as a kind of Eden. Instead, Achebe sketches a world in which violence, war, and suffering exist, but are balanced by a strong sense of tradition, ritual, and social coherence. His Ibo protagonist, Okonkwo, is a self-made man. The son of a charming ne'er-do-well, he has worked all his life to overcome his father's weakness and has arrived, finally, at great prosperity and even greater reputation among his fellows in the village of Umuofia. Okonkwo is a champion wrestler, a prosperous farmer, husband to three wives and father to several children. He is also a man who exhibits flaws well-known in Greek tragedy:

Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness. It was deeper and more intimate than the fear of evil and capricious gods and of magic, the fear of the forest, and of the forces of nature, malevolent, red in tooth and claw. Okonkwo's fear was greater than these. It was not external but lay deep within himself. It was the fear of himself, lest he should be found to resemble his father.

And yet Achebe manages to make this cruel man deeply sympathetic. He is fond of his eldest daughter, and also of Ikemefuna, a young boy sent from another village as compensation for the wrongful death of a young woman from Umuofia. He even begins to feel pride in his eldest son, in whom he has too often seen his own father. Unfortunately, a series of tragic events tests the mettle of this strong man, and it is his fear of weakness that ultimately undoes him.

Achebe does not introduce the theme of colonialism until the last 50 pages or so. By then, Okonkwo has lost everything and been driven into exile. And yet, within the traditions of his culture, he still has hope of redemption. The arrival of missionaries in Umuofia, however, followed by representatives of the colonial government, completely disrupts Ibo culture, and in the chasm between old ways and new, Okonkwo is lost forever. Deceptively simple in its prose, Things Fall Apart packs a powerful punch as Achebe holds up the ruin of one proud man to stand for the destruction of an entire culture. --Alix Wilber

From Library Journal

Peter Frances James offers a superb narration of Nigerian novelist Achebe's deceptively simple 1959 masterpiece. In direct, almost fable-like prose, it depicts the rise and fall of Okonkwo, a Nigerian whose sense of manliness is more akin to that of his warrior ancestors than to that of his fellow clansmen who have converted to Christianity and are appeasing the British administrators who infiltrate their village. The tough, proud, hardworking Okonkwo is at once a quintessential old-order Nigerian and a universal character in whom sons of all races have identified the figure of their father. Achebe creates a many-sided picture of village life and a sympathetic hero. A good recording of this novel has been long overdue, and the unhurried grace and quiet dignity of James's narration make it essential for every collection.?Peter Josyph, New York
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product details

Paperback: 209 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books (September 1, 1994)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385474547
ISBN-13: 978-0385474542
Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 1,698 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #197 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > African
- #8 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Political
- #12 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Contemporary

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Rare story of village life and colonization from a traditional African perspective

December 21, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

In this deceptively slim and elegantly written book there are at least three stories.

One is a story of traditional African village life and culture in full detail (including a glossary of African terms). This story begins late in the pre-colonial period, and occupies at least two-thirds of the book before moving almost imperceptibly into another story, that of the way in which the village people deal with the arrival of Christian missionaries and the eventual establishment of colonial authority (in this case, British).

It is also a life story of Okonkwo, a traditional African warrior of that time and culture. As Okonkwo matures and moves through early adulthood, the reader learns about the events in his life that shape the man he eventually becomes.

In one respect, this could be considered just another chapter in the tale of how Christianity served as seeming helpmate to European colonization of not only Africa but many natives of the New World. In this story, however, there are certain signs of early tolerance and attempts at mutual understanding. Later attitudes harden when the tolerant head of the local church is replaced by someone much more stiff-necked, setting in motion a train of events leading ultimately to tragedy.

For a story so simply told and without any real complicated plot twists, there are lots of interesting things to think about. Suggestions:

- The story seems short on details concerning the way in which colonial power is established—one day the whites are barely worth mentioning in marketplace chatter, and almost overnight, their presence seems to have changed almost everything. But perhaps this is exactly the way in which that story would be told from a villager’s perspective.

- Tolerance is a major issue even today. Yet the villagers seemingly become victims of their own tolerant attitudes about the missionaries. If they had rejected them from the beginning, and had not allowed them to stay, things might have come out differently. By the time they recognized the destructive influence these beliefs had on their own lives, it was too late.

- After a church burning, the colonial district commissioner gives village leaders a speech about the justice system the British have brought them. However, this justice system is not in evidence at that time; instead, what is visited on those leaders is summary “justice” by the commissioner, followed by corruption on the part of his henchman as their penalty is raised even further.

An amazing little book with so much packed into it and so much to think about.

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Fascinating Novel

January 3, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This was a wonderful experience. The story was full of the life of Africa. The variety of beliefs in everyday life was engrossing. Look forward to reading the next two books in the trilogy.

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Wonderful read by an amazing author

December 7, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

An interesting and well written story of pre-colonial Africa. A new perspective on “primitive “ people and their culture. I can’t wait to read the other books in the trilogy.

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Very good - must refer to glossary to enjoy

December 24, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Very accurate and educational and essential to understanding a very important culture. Full exploration of the glossary is very helpful for a full and accurate understanding

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Amazon Customer

December 14, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Large cast of characters, excellent world building, with an unexpected twist at the end, overall I consider it to be a strong work for school projects.

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Very pleased with my purchase

November 30, 2017

Verified Purchase

I received this item in a timely manner and it is as advertised. Very pleased with my purchase. The company did a great job. Thank you.

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December 31, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I love this book it was an eye opening novel

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May 30, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Required for tenth grade reading assignment.

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Most recent customer reviews

fast arrival and just what we needed

Published 15 minutes ago

Amazon Customer

Well...that was...interesting

So, Things Fall Apart was...interesting. It gives a very detailed look at life in pre-colonial Nigeria. That part of it was really fascinating.Read more

Published 5 days ago

Had to read this for my AP Lang class which is basically African American Lit.... good book but my teacher made me hate it.

Published 9 days ago

The tribe and protagonist act repulsively to the point that I didn't care what happened to them or feel bad about whatever cultural destruction the Europeans are supposed to ...

Quit the book a third of the way through. The tribe and protagonist act repulsively to the point that I didn't care what happened to them or feel bad about whatever cultural...Read more

Published 12 days ago

It was older and more marked up than advertised

Published 12 days ago

Published 13 days ago

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Published 17 days ago

Published 20 days ago

george c. massie

Interesting story.

Published 21 days ago

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