Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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Web ID: 6018382My ELA Project
Reading the book Purple Hibiscus showed me a life completely different from my own through the eyes of the young protagonist, Kambili. The book was jarring, intense, and raw, and often left me flabbergasted. However, it had moments of humor, hope, and simple love for family. Kamblil, who was only a year younger than I was, making her thoughts and experiences feel much closer to home than I expected. As Kambili grappled with the state of her life and world, I couldn’t help but notice how young she seemed to me. I think Adichie did a wonderful job showing how Kambili’s father has stunted her mental growth using simple lines of thought, dialog, and sprinkling obliviousness and blind obedience. Her time with Auntie Ifeoma and her cousins helped her break free from her father, finally allowing her to become her own person. Ifeoma’s quotes were some of the best in the book, with one of my favorites being “Defiance is like marijuana - it is not a bad thing when it is used right.” It's a funny line but has so much truth hidden inside it. Something that Kambili would later learn in the story. There are many great elements to this book, however, it left me with only mild feelings and reactions. The whole story is very intense, but it didn't make me feel much at all after reading it. It left me only with the feeling of having read a book. In my opinion, Kambili’s childish nature made the stakes of the story seem separated from her. I think that was intentional to show her immaturity, but it ended up seeming like she was also reading a book about the things happening around her instead of living them. In general, I found Kambili to be very tiring at times. Her antics distract from the severity of her situation. Her inability to look at things past the comprehension of a 10 year old was very frustrating. I'll say again that I think all this was intentional but it came off as annoying. Her inability to see her father in any light but a God like one greatly frustrates me. I understand that it is the only thing she has ever known, but at some point, you think that she would figure out that kind of behavior is not normal and should never be tolerated. Especially when she visits her aunt and sees a real, stable, kind family. Even by the end of the book, when she is several years older, she still puts her dad on a pedestal when he should be in the gutter. All in all, I thought the book was very good. I loved the relationships in the book and how it showed me a new perspective on a life I had never seen before. I did think that the author should have dived more into her dad's childhood to explain his behavior. Especially since his sister turned out so different from him. I also think that putting more detail into Kamblil and Jaja’s relationship would have been very interesting. In the beginning of the book, you see much more of their relationship, but it gets forgotten about by the time you're halfway through the book.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Highly Recommended
This is such a simple read with deep topics. I love the way Adichie wrote this book, it is literally so hard not to feel like you're in the book itself.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Moving Novel
When I first started reading this book I was sincerely worried that it would be a slow read. It ended up being a profoundly beautiful novel. Kambili's diverse relationship with all of her family members made the novel feel captivating and real. Kambili's struggle to understand her father's faith and her grandfather's and aunt's beliefs opened a window to a unique experience. It was moving to read how Kambili learned to navigate her world and make sense of religion and how that played into her loved one's actions. I also thought it was fitting that she was upset by her father's death. While I was not upset by his death, it only made sense that she was devastated and confused by his death, deeply missing him, but also struggling to come to terms with the fact that he was an abuser.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com