As teenagers in Lagos, Ifemelu and Obinze fall in love. Their Nigeria is under military dictatorship, and people are fleeing the country if they can. The self-assured Ifemelu departs for America. There she suffers defeats and triumphs, finds and loses relationships, 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 a dangerous, undocumented life in London.
Thirteen years later, Obinze is a wealthy man in a newly democratic Nigeria, while Ifemelu has achieved success as a blogger. But after so long apart and so many changes, will they find the courage to meet again, face to face?
Fearless, gripping, spanning three continents and numerous lives, the National Book Critics Circle Award-winning Americanah is a richly told story of love and expectation set in today’s globalized world.
Customer Review
This book follows the lives of Ifemelu and Obinze, two middle-class Nigerians. Ifemelu leaves to study in the US, where she writes a biting blog on race. Obinze struggles as an illegal immigrant in the UK. They finally meet again in Lagos. Well-written and intelligent, this novel was my top read of 2014.
Customer Review
The cover of Americanah caught my attention in bookstores and from several Instagram accounts. It wasn't until someone recommended me the book that I bought it and read it. It's not an easy read, the book is told from the point of view of two people and the story is non linear. But it was well worth it and it opened my eyes to things I never considered before.
Staff Choice: Damla
Americanah touches upon so many vital subjects, from race to gender relationships, social hierarchies, prejudices, covering both the "Western" and African perspective. What hit me as most poignant was how she handled the topic of immigration: feeling an outsider in the foreign West, but also back home; the homesickness despite the corruption, judgment, and alienation that awaits; the yearning to escape, and yet condoning those who do leave.
An incredibly powerful book with touching depth and insight into the human mind, emotion, ambition, desire, and whims.
Customer Review
I had some reservations going in that it might be too "literary," but Adichie's writing is rich and sumptuous without being too dense. Perfect.
Customer Review
Superb descriptions of the US and the UK from African immigrants' points of view, one of them illegal. The love story isn't bad either.
Customer Review
About a Nigerian woman who moves to the US - and back. As a white Dutch woman I thought it very interesting to learn about the experiences of an African woman, who moves from a country where being black is no issue to the US with its race issues, even between African-Americans and American-Africans. But also about life in Nigeria, before and after her move.
