Americanah
Americanah
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Barack Obama
Barack Obama's favorite books of 2018 list.
Kathryn Minshew
Most Recommended Books reached out to Kathryn Minshew directly.
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Americanah

Americanah

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
By
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
4.3
30523
ratings on Goodreads

In "Americanah," Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie weaves a powerful tapestry of love, identity, and the search for belonging that stretches across continents. The novel unfolds through the eyes of Ifemelu and Obinze, whose young love and dreams are interrupted by the harsh realities of immigration and the quest for a better life. Ifemelu's journey to America exposes her to the complexities of race and what it means to be black in a world that preaches diversity but practices discrimination. Her narrative is a poignant exploration of self-discovery, as she navigates the challenges of assimilation and the loss of identity in a land that is at once welcoming and alienating. Obinze's path, equally compelling, takes us into the shadows of undocumented life in London, where dreams are deferred and existence is precarious. Adichie captures the essence of longing and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of insurmountable odds. When Ifemelu and Obinze reunite in a Nigeria brimming with hope and change, they are confronted with the truths about themselves and the world they thought they knew. "Americanah" is not just a love story; it is a bold, unflinching examination of the intersections of culture, race, and identity. Adichie's masterful storytelling invites us to reflect on our own perceptions of home and belonging, making "Americanah" a compelling and transformative read.

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Released
2013
14 May
Length
477
Pages

2

recommendations

recommendation

Most Recommended Books reached out to Kathryn Minshew directly.
Barack Obama's favorite books of 2018 list.
The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it was not. But it’s a lie. I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America. When you are black in America and you fall in love with a white person, race doesn’t matter when you’re alone together because it’s just you and your love. But the minute you step outside, race matters. But we don’t talk about it. We don’t even tell our white partners the small things that piss us off and the things we wish they understood better, because we’re worried they will say we’re overreacting, or we’re being too sensitive. And we don’t want them to say, Look how far we’ve come, just forty years ago it would have been illegal for us to even be a couple blah blah blah, because you know what we’re thinking when they say that? We’re thinking why the fuck should it ever have been illegal anyway? But we don’t say any of this stuff. We let it pile up inside our heads and when we come to nice liberal dinners like this, we say that race doesn’t matter because that’s what we’re supposed to say, to keep our nice liberal friends comfortable. It’s true. I speak from experience.
— Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Americanah

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