Timbuktu Book Club discussion

Throwback to our first club read...
The classical "Things Fall Apart" by the Legendary @chinua_achebe_
And so we had begun 😀🙃
Things Fall Apart is the debut novel by Nigerian author @chinua_achebe_ first published in 1958. It depicts pre-colonial life in the southeastern part of @Nigeria and the invasion by Europeans during the late 19th century. It is seen as the archetypal modern African novel in English, and one of the first to receive global critical acclaim. It is a staple book in schools throughout Africa and is widely read and studied in English-speaking countries around the world.
One of the classics of the 20th century Things Fall Apart marks an epoch in African writing with global appeal given the fact the colonization - the British empire in particular - was international in its reach. The literary genius -- mission-schooled -- Chinua Achebe wrote the canonical book -- which makes him an icon in the literary hall of fame -- to fill the gap in his otherwise white-writing bookshelf & the title was inspired by the poem of the same name. In a way writing the book was his means of decolonizing the bookshelf - in effect - decolonizing the mind. The novel historisizes the rise & fall of Africa - the transition from tradition to colonial modernity - through the tragic story of the protagonist - Okwonko, a polygamous hard-working warrior - giant of a man - who literally went from zero to hero & back again - falling from grace at the last kick of the novel. The book is a crash course into the endangered African indegenous knowledge systems & touches -- among others -- on the food & the music, proverbs & idioms of African people. It also historisizes -- though in a fictional fashion -- the role of the missionaries & their religious & socio-cultural legacy.
We are #timbuktubookclub