Purple Hibiscus: a novel [B2298]

2012 PB in nice clean condition. For ages 16 & up. "One of the most vital and original novelists of her generation." -Larissa MacFarquhar, The New Yorker. From the bestselling author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists. Fifteen-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a privileged life in Enugu, Nigeria. They live in a beautiful house, with a caring family, and attend an exclusive missionary school. They're completely shielded from the troubles of the world. Yet, as Kambili reveals in her tender-voiced account, things are less perfect than they appear. Although her Papa is generous and well respected, he is fanatically religious and tyrannical at home-a home that is silent and suffocating.

As the country begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili and Jaja are sent to their aunt, a university professor outside the city, where they discover a life beyond the confines of their father's authority. Books cram the shelves, curry and nutmeg permeate the air, and their cousins' laughter rings throughout the house. When they return home, tensions within the family escalate, and Kambili must find the strength to keep her loved ones together. Purple Hibiscus is an exquisite novel about the emotional turmoil of adolescence, the powerful bonds of family, and the bright promise of freedom.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie delivers a powerful story about family, faith, control, and the courage it takes to find your voice when you've spent your life being told to stay quiet. Kambili's world is both heartbreaking and beautifully rendered, with the tension building in ways that make you want to reach through the pages and tell certain people to sit down and rethink their life choices. Adichie's writing is gorgeous, and the contrast between silence and freedom is especially striking. This isn't always an easy read, but it's a thought-provoking one that lingers long after the final page."; "This was beautifully written, so much so that it left me with that inexplainable homesick feeling for a place and people I've never known. I loved the development of the characters, especially our narrator over the course of the book. I seriously just wanted to reach through the book and give Kambili a hug."; "Heartbreaking. Africa has suffered so much."; "Maybe my favorite book from her! It had me feeling and thinking a lot. This story was so rich with thought-provoking themes of family, loyalty, wealth & poverty, happiness/love, religion, colonization, and the impact of missionaries. Such strong characters and character development with a lot of unexpected plot points. The ending was great!"