Things Fall Apart: A Book Review

By Chase M.

     Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart relates the story of Okonkwo, a self-made man of high standing within his clan. Okonkwo’s father was lazy, an abhorred trait in Umuofian society. Because of this, Okonkwo had to start from scratch to build up his reputation, begging for seeds to plant when others used seeds their fathers had given them. After building up his reputation as a warrior and wrestler, tragedy struck Okonkwo. He accidentally shot a village boy and, according to clan law, was exiled from his village for seven years. He traveled to Mbanta, a nearby village, to live with his mother’s family, seeking shelter and a new start for his life. While living in Mbanta, he had to rebuild all that he had lost and remain isolated from his clan. After the seven years were over, Okonkwo traveled back to Umuofia to start anew again, but something was amiss. White men had arrived in his city. Missionaries had come to convert the Ibo people to Christianity, the white man’s religion. Okonkwo, an angry man, failed his clan once again during the missionaries’ time in Umuofia. He killed a messenger, getting thrown in jail in the process. After this came Okonkwo’s ultimate demise. With everything having fallen apart around him, Okonkwo committed suicide, hanging himself outside his hut.

     Things Fall Apart was a decent novel that had a disjointed storyline but retained enough action to keep my interest. Achebe’s writing style is comprised of short sentences that are easy to understand in themselves, but difficult to decipher when put together. The story does not flow very well, remaining choppy throughout the novel. I think part of the brokenness stems from the translation of the novel from Achebe’s native African. The words have the feel of translation, and some African words are left in place. This made the story difficult to understand because I did not realize the cultural significance of some events and people. Achebe writes as though the reader already knows the basics of Ibo culture and mentions such things as the kola nut and obi without explaining what they actually are. Together, the awkwardness of translation and the assumption that I already knew anything about the Umuofian society made the book difficult to grasp at points. Another thing that lent to the books choppiness was Achebe’s timeline. This is another item that he failed to detail most of the time. Much of the book left me wondering when events happened in relation to each other, becoming more of a collection of short stories than a full novel. Mostly occurring near the beginning of the book, this phenomenon became less frequent later. Things Fall Apart’s storyline is broken at best, leaving the reader wondering what actually happened much of the time.

     One of the most positive elements of Things Fall Apart is Okonkwo himself. Regardless of whether he is a likeable character or not, he is consistently entertaining. He continuously puts himself in perilous or action-packed situations, from accidentally shooting people to burning down the missionaries’ church. Wanting to know what he would do next kept me reading long enough to find his next big event. The book, centralizing on Okonkwo, the protagonist, is full of his blunders and shows of masculinity. He consistently puts himself in bad situations because he is afraid other clan members will think he is weak, even killing his own adopted son against clan law. This series of bad decisions and violence was enough to keep me reading and created some genuinely enjoyable parts of the book. Okonkwo’s tendency to land in unpleasant situations keeps the novel intriguing.

     Overall, Things Fall Apart is a decent book that I would recommend as a worthy read. It taught me much about African culture and told a fresh tale of missionaries coming to a remote village. As often as I read a tale written from the missionaries’ point of view, it was nice to see the other side of the coin. Achebe’s storytelling is not the best, and he forgets to mention a timeline to events, but much of the story’s awkwardness can be attributed to its translation. Okonkwo kept my interest throughout the novel, making me wait for his next mishap or outburst. He is the person that keeps the story from getting boring. Achebe’s novel does not tell of adventure, nor is it overly exciting, but it remains fairly consistent throughout, telling of the destruction of Okonkwo’s way of life. Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is a recommended read that, while having its faults, keeps a reader’s interest.