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paola_mobileread's review against another edition
3.0
Reading this book I could not avoid thinking of [a:Philip Larkin|64716|Philip Larkin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1212545983p2/64716.jpg]'s This be the verse, though here one may well add "religion"and "colonialism" to "mum and dad".
Dad here is a misguided, bigoted psychopath who is as violent with his family as he is generous with everyone who comes his way, and upright in his championing of Catholicism and political freedom. Religion comes in the shape of Father Benedict, who seems as pleased in anyone beating sin out of sinners as the worst sadist; and colonialism's consequences are peppered everywhere, from the trivial yet shocking (every children had to choose an English name to be Confirmed), to the shocking and disturbing (not attending your own father's funeral because he was not a Christian like you).
The storyline does not matter too much, but even so the novel for me suffered because of the flatness of the characters, mostly unidimensional - the battered wife and mother and the monster dad, the nasty priest and the wonderful wise priest, the delightfully positive and combative aunt with her perfectly adjusted children, and so on: perhaps the only really complex character is the dutiful son, but he is left largely unexplored.
So yes, I was a bit disappointed, but in terms of the larger picture Adichie seems to want to take on from [a:Chinua Achebe|8051|Chinua Achebe|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1294661664p2/8051.jpg]'s steps, and I liked the novel for that - so I am intrigued enough to want to read more of this author.
Dad here is a misguided, bigoted psychopath who is as violent with his family as he is generous with everyone who comes his way, and upright in his championing of Catholicism and political freedom. Religion comes in the shape of Father Benedict, who seems as pleased in anyone beating sin out of sinners as the worst sadist; and colonialism's consequences are peppered everywhere, from the trivial yet shocking (every children had to choose an English name to be Confirmed), to the shocking and disturbing (not attending your own father's funeral because he was not a Christian like you).
The storyline does not matter too much, but even so the novel for me suffered because of the flatness of the characters, mostly unidimensional - the battered wife and mother and the monster dad, the nasty priest and the wonderful wise priest, the delightfully positive and combative aunt with her perfectly adjusted children, and so on: perhaps the only really complex character is the dutiful son, but he is left largely unexplored.
So yes, I was a bit disappointed, but in terms of the larger picture Adichie seems to want to take on from [a:Chinua Achebe|8051|Chinua Achebe|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1294661664p2/8051.jpg]'s steps, and I liked the novel for that - so I am intrigued enough to want to read more of this author.
broccolindsey's review
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
marjolein's review
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
mitskacir's review
5.0
Adichie continues to be one of my favorite authors. I've read all her other books, and felt like this one, as her first, was slightly less masterful (rounding up from 4.5 stars), but still had all the hallmarks of her later writing. Her characters were complex, but their complexity was more surface level and not as fully realized as in some of her other books: Kambili loves and fears her father, and her emotions are restrained and repressed because of the abuse she experiences - but at the same time, this emotional estrangement from the reader makes it harder to understand the full complexity of her perceptions; her father is abusive, tender, and charitable, but much of this is told to us instead of experienced through Kambili. Nonetheless, this book was gripping and made my heart ache with both the horrors and joys Kambili experiences.
arethauamai's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
majs1337's review against another edition
3.0
Okej så ja läste boken pga skolan, så det tar ju bort halva upplevelsen.
Men jag vet inte riktigt vad jag tycker.
Den va liksom inte sämst, jag gillade coming of age delen av den. Just för att huvudpersonen var så jävla jobbig i början.
”Romansen” är dock helt jävla vrickad. Did not like. I alla scenarion är det fel att en 15 åring och en vuxen man (ingen bestämd ålder, kanske runt 26(?)) gillar varandra. Visst, de agerar aldirg på sina känslor. Men det faktum att EN VUXEN MAN är kär i ETT BARN är helt sjukt i huvudet. Helt onödigt.
Men den är läsvärd faktiskt. Skulle nog inte läsa om den, skulle heller aldrig läst den om de inte var för skolan. Men den tar upp viktiga topics.
Men jag vet inte riktigt vad jag tycker.
Den va liksom inte sämst, jag gillade coming of age delen av den. Just för att huvudpersonen var så jävla jobbig i början.
”Romansen” är dock helt jävla vrickad. Did not like. I alla scenarion är det fel att en 15 åring och en vuxen man (ingen bestämd ålder, kanske runt 26(?)) gillar varandra. Visst, de agerar aldirg på sina känslor. Men det faktum att EN VUXEN MAN är kär i ETT BARN är helt sjukt i huvudet. Helt onödigt.
Men den är läsvärd faktiskt. Skulle nog inte läsa om den, skulle heller aldrig läst den om de inte var för skolan. Men den tar upp viktiga topics.
sidharthvardhan's review
4.0
So Kamibili's father is like god to her - uncorruptable, powerful, imortal, whose anger is to be feared and whose praise is to be won. He is also a newly turned christian - who believes in sin and all and wants his family to toe to the lines of christian morality, which involves breaking ties with his father who believes in Africal tradational religion but doesn't stop him from beating his wife and children because they skipped their mass or something. His idealism does have some positive aspects when it comes to speaking against political oprression and making charities.
Now this is not so much a story about religion as a story about idealism vs hedonism. Of course Hedonism wins all rounds. Kambili who is always looking to get into his good books and of course he has just one 'The Good Book' and it says nothing about laughing, mirth and self-worth. Thus K or her brother neaver learned those things. This changes when K visited her aunt and met a hot priest. The 'purple' of title has similar symbolism as in Walker's 'Color Purple'
Now this is not so much a story about religion as a story about idealism vs hedonism. Of course Hedonism wins all rounds. Kambili who is always looking to get into his good books and of course he has just one 'The Good Book' and it says nothing about laughing, mirth and self-worth. Thus K or her brother neaver learned those things. This changes when K visited her aunt and met a hot priest. The 'purple' of title has similar symbolism as in Walker's 'Color Purple'
bhnmt61's review
4.0
Beautifully written, complex, hard to read. Trigger warning for a cruel and abusive father.