Things Fall Apart

Chinua Achebe, 1959 Date Read: 4/3/22

I used to be Christian. I was a member of a Southern Baptist church (in the Adirondacks of New York) for well over a decade. I raised my kids in the church and we attended a Christian homeschool group (though, to be fair, it was the only homeschool group in the area).

Even when I was a practicing, believing Christian I had a lot of issues with the idea of missionaries. I understand why churches sponsor them, the Bible says to. But I disagree with it. I don't like the idea of showing up somewhere and telling people what they should think and believe. It's just not right.

I mention all this because that is the plot of this novel. The novel takes place in Nigeria and shows life before and after the arrival of British missionaries.

It's not just the missionaries that bother me, but the entire idea of colonization. If people already live there, you can't just show up and take over. It's wrong. And I say this as an American, knowing how many countries my country has violated. (Including our own - the Native Americans who already lived here shouldn't have been killed and pushed aside).

For that reason, I find this novel heartbreaking. It is beautifully written, and I am always very interested in how people live in different places (my first degree was in anthropology). I enjoyed book 1 much more than 2 and 3 for this reason.

I do think this should be required reading for high schoolers so they can get an idea of how awful colonization has been.

Length: 209 pages

Rereadability: yes

Classic: YES and should be required reading!