Things Fall Apart
Named one of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped Our World', this celebrated work sits at the opening of Achebe's African Trilogy and tells the story of a man caught between the world he knows and forces determined to dismantle it. Okonkwo is a figure of almost mythic standing: the finest wrestler and warrior of his generation, his reputation rippling across West Africa. Then a single fatal accident sets his life on a different course entirely. Exiled from his community, he returns to find missionaries and colonial administrators have taken root in his village. The world he fought so hard to uphold is crumbling, and he is powerless to stop it. First published in 1958, Achebe's novel arrived with a quiet precision that proved quietly devastating. Its cool, ironic tone never raises its voice, yet the weight of what it describes is enormous. It has since sold over ten million copies across forty-five languages, reshaping how African literature was written, read, and understood on a global scale. This is a portrait of a proud man watching his people's way of life collapse under the pressure of colonial intrusion. It begins a trilogy continued in 'Arrow of God' and 'No Longer at Ease'. Toni Morrison wrote that 'his courage and generosity are made manifest in the work'. Nelson Mandela called Achebe 'the writer in whose company the prison walls fell down'. John Updike described it as 'a great book, that bespeaks a great, brave, kind, human spirit'. This edition includes an introduction by Biyi Bandele.
- Author: Chinua Achebe
- Publisher: Penguin Classics
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- ISBN: 978-0323613019
- Pages: 176 pages