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Review
'A beautiful and often harrowing story.'
Observer Books of the Year
‘A sensitive and touching story of a child exposed too early to religious intolerance and the uglier side of the Nigerian state.’ J. M. Coetzee
‘Political brutality and domestic violence, religion and witchcraft all merge with subtle force in this memorable novel. Chimammanda Ngozi Adichie uses childhood innocence to write Nigerian history with the eye of a family insider.’
Hugo Hamilton
‘Purple Hibiscus is the best debut I've read since Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things.’
Jason Cowley, Times journalist, literary editor of the New Statesman
‘This debut ensnares the reader from the first page and lingers in the memory…in soft, searing voice, Adichie examines the complexities of family, faith and country through the haunted but hopeful eyes of a young girl on the cusp of womanhood.’
Publishers Weekly
Review
'Immensely powerful., The Times 'An intoxicating story that is at once distinctly feminine, African and universal.' Observer 'There,s a quiet confidence about the writing which is very attractive - it isn,t showy, it isn,t brash, but on the contrary both captivating and mature., Margaret Forster 'A sensitive and touching story of a child exposed too early to religious intolerance and the uglier side of the Nigerian state., J. M. Coetzee 'A beautifully judged account of the private intimate stirrings of a young girl...Adichie is a fresh new voice out of Africa., Telegraph 'Political brutality and domestic violence, religion and witchcraft all merge with subtle force in this memorable novel. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie uses childhood innocence to write Nigerian history with the eye of a family insider., Hugo Hamilton 'One of the finest debut novels of recent years...as punchy and characterful as Monica Ali,s "Brick Lane"., Evening Standard 'Assured and evocative...a tale for our times., Daily Mail 'Grips the reader from start to finish. I could not put it down., Irish Times
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First Sentence
Things started to fall apart at home when my brother, Jaja, did not go to communion and Papa flung his heavy missal across the room and broke the figurines on the etagere. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Things started to fall apart at home when my brother, Jaja, did not go to communion and Papa flung his heavy missal across the room and broke the figurines on the etagere. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
55 of 55 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I picked this book up intending to read a few pages in just to see what I thought and actually hardly put it down again until I had finished it.
It is a fantastic insight into life in Nigeria in unsettled political times with the overarching conflict of the Catholic religion versus indigenous faiths almost subsuming everything else.
Kambili and Jaja's father is a prosperous and generous Catholic businessman respected and revered in the wider community for his support of charities yet behind closed doors he is a despotic, controlling and ultimately extremely violent man.
Helpless and seemingly powerless, the family can do nothing but tolerate Papa's violence which despite it's brutality still does nothing to affect their love for him until finally and very unexpectedly the power does shift.Adichie creates the family who have everything yet have nothing and then contrasts them powerfully with another branch of the family who seemingly have nothing yet have it all and it works.
She delineates fear superbly;the reader really feels and lives what this family are going through.There is a wonderful intermingling of local dialect within the narrative that grounds this book very firmly in Nigeria and much of the beauty and hardship of the country is clearly described in a flowing and atmospheric style.
Despite the stomach-churning physical abuse that almost moves you to tears for many reasons ,I found this an ultimately very satisfying read.
It is a fantastic insight into life in Nigeria in unsettled political times with the overarching conflict of the Catholic religion versus indigenous faiths almost subsuming everything else.
Kambili and Jaja's father is a prosperous and generous Catholic businessman respected and revered in the wider community for his support of charities yet behind closed doors he is a despotic, controlling and ultimately extremely violent man.
Helpless and seemingly powerless, the family can do nothing but tolerate Papa's violence which despite it's brutality still does nothing to affect their love for him until finally and very unexpectedly the power does shift.Adichie creates the family who have everything yet have nothing and then contrasts them powerfully with another branch of the family who seemingly have nothing yet have it all and it works.
She delineates fear superbly;the reader really feels and lives what this family are going through.There is a wonderful intermingling of local dialect within the narrative that grounds this book very firmly in Nigeria and much of the beauty and hardship of the country is clearly described in a flowing and atmospheric style.
Despite the stomach-churning physical abuse that almost moves you to tears for many reasons ,I found this an ultimately very satisfying read.
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Purple Hibiscus is a beautiful story. The plot is based on a 14 year-old who grew up under the stifling patronage of a stern father. Her domineering father frequently physically abused his family alongside her, creating terror at home and stunting the psychological growth of his children. Against the backdrop of the deterioration of the socio-economic and political life of Nigeria as it undergoes a military coup, the life Kambili knows is shattered and she has to seek for refuge in the home of her aunt. Kambili the sheltered but highly restricted child, who never thought of herself as lucky and who had earlier been absconded by her peers and cousin because of her supposedly privileges, learns to assert herself and becomes a beloved character, a character who easily understood the plight of those around her.. Kambili at first came to terms with her father as someone who regarded himself as a pillar of the community and someone she genuinely loved. Even the emotional and physical pains he inflicted are seen only as a gesture of love for her own good, but later she comes to consider his actions as abnormal. With its vivid portrayal of Nigerian life, and brilliant dissection of the characters , this novel moves at a pace which is electrifying.Also recommended:HALF OF A YELLOW SUN, THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES,that I enjoyed this summer.
58 of 60 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Read by our bookclub, this book produced enthusiastic reviews.
Teenage Kambili tells her story. Gradually we begin to see the cracks in a family that outwardly appears prosperous and loving. The children are painfully subserviant, less than first place in school provokes serious repercussions. The mother has repeated miscarriages while the father is the village philanthropist.
After a visit to her Aunt Ifeoma and her three cousins, Kambili starts to see things as they really are; the life she thought normal starts to become frightening.
The threatening thing about the situation is the power of the church and the Catholic religion, used as an excuse to inflict terrible punishment for percieved misdemeanors. Also the power of other people's opinions and maintaining a position within the village.
It's a book that you won't want to put down, but some passages are quite distressing.
Teenage Kambili tells her story. Gradually we begin to see the cracks in a family that outwardly appears prosperous and loving. The children are painfully subserviant, less than first place in school provokes serious repercussions. The mother has repeated miscarriages while the father is the village philanthropist.
After a visit to her Aunt Ifeoma and her three cousins, Kambili starts to see things as they really are; the life she thought normal starts to become frightening.
The threatening thing about the situation is the power of the church and the Catholic religion, used as an excuse to inflict terrible punishment for percieved misdemeanors. Also the power of other people's opinions and maintaining a position within the village.
It's a book that you won't want to put down, but some passages are quite distressing.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Beautiful
I have read Purple Hibiscus three times,can't be tired of reading it.I have my copy and this purchase is a christmas gift for my brother in law. Read more
Published 4 months ago by babyb
Beautiful....
I'm in love with Ngozi's story telling...
Her stories are so effortless and beautiful I nearly cried when I turned the page and Purple hibisus was over!! Read more
Her stories are so effortless and beautiful I nearly cried when I turned the page and Purple hibisus was over!! Read more
Published 7 months ago by N. Laryea
purple hibiscus
My daughter highly recommends this book to any teenage girl because it engages you to read more and its interesting to read. once she started she honestly cant stop.
Published 7 months ago by sim
nice book
Not as good as Half of a Yellow Sun. It's obvious that she wasn't as experienced a writer when writing this book as she has now become. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Nill
A Difficult Subject Made Impressive & Immensly Readable
With her debut novel `Purple Hibiscus' Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie takes us into the heart of a family in Nigeria not long after its colonisation, though this not the focus that the... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Simon Savidge Reads
A great read
A great story written from a childs' perspective which portrays religious bigotary, the tormoil of Nigeria and the human spirit at its best. Read more
Published 13 months ago by alimaeb
Superb
This book is fantastic, couldn't wait to get home from work to read more.
Reduced me to tears, and as always with a good book, sorry it had to end. Read more
Reduced me to tears, and as always with a good book, sorry it had to end. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Lesley
Thought provoking
This book is just . . . great. It has that element to it that makes you 'think' of who is the victim in a society and how they can possibly win. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Miss H. O. Johnson
Review of Purple Hibiscus
What an excellent book. I really enjoyed this and found that I couldn't put it down. It covered some very difficult topics with skill and sympathy, and gave a good insight to both... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Polly Green
Totally Enjoyable
After reading Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "Half of a Yellow Sun" (which was amazing), I thought I'd try this book out. I have to say that i found it hard to drop the book! Read more
Published 17 months ago by Ola Ogunyemi
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