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Last Easter, I had the pleasure of reading one of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie‘s books for the first time.
I didn’t stop at only one of her novels, though. Rather, I jumped in with both feet and read Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah back to back.
I hadn’t planned to do this particularly—I don’t generally read fiction—but my mother who knows what a fan of Ms. Adichie’s I am, passed on these books to me on Easter weekend after she was done with them herself. With lots of time on my hands, I couldn’t resist!
Before I begin telling you about either book, allow me to ask: do you know who Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is?
In case you don’t, let me introduce her to you the way I first learned about her: through her popular TED Talk “The Danger of a Single Story”.
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – The Danger of a Single Story
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From the first time I heard this talk, I was hooked.
I knew Ms. Adichie’s was an African voice I wanted to keep listening to and boy, have I!
I listen to and/or read any of Ms. Adichie’s talks, interviews, or short stories that I’m lucky enough to get my hands on.
Until last Easter, though, I had never read any of her novels (as I said, I don’t generally read fiction).
Getting back to my question, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is an award-winning Nigerian novelist known for books such as Purple Hibiscus (a fantastic read by the way, don’t skip it!), Half of a Yellow Sun, and Americanah (written in that order).
Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah are her second and third novels respectively.
Now, let’s take a look at her two later novels in closer detail.
Half of a Yellow Sun Book
Half of a Yellow Sun was published in 2006, while Americanah was published seven years later in 2013.
Because of that, despite my mother recommending that I start reading Americanah first, I chose to begin with Half of a Yellow Sun.
Why?
Because I reasoned that the odds were great Ms. Adichie had honed her craft in those seven years, meaning there was a good chance that Americanah was the better of the two books.
I didn’t want to read the better book first and then be disappointed by the less well-written one. (I shouldn’t have worried about this. Both books are brilliantly written, and I actually liked Half of a Yellow Sun a bit more).