Americanah: novel by Ngozi Adichie

 

‘Americanah’ tells the story of Ifemelu, a strong willed, free thinking Nigerian who, along with her boyfriend, Obinze, grows up with a desire to move to America and live the ‘American dream’. Their romanticized view is based on what they read in books and see on television programmes. They are intelligent, well educated and highly motivated, forced to emigrate not because of ambition, or war or poverty, but by “the oppressive lethargy of choicelessness” in their country.

Obinze’s application for his visa is unsuccessful, so he tries his luck as an illegal immigrant in Britain. Where Obinze fails, Ifemelu thrives. Writing about her experiences in America she becomes a highly respected and successful blogger.

Having spent over a decade in America she decides to go back to Nigeria. In preparation, she visits a hair salon to have her hair freshly braided for her return home. It is during her time at the salon (and hair itself is a potent symbol throughout) that the novel is mostly related in flashback.

Americanah is about race, a feeling of dislocation, and the culture clash when Africa meets America and Britain. Essentially it is a tale of two lives and three continents. Away from home, Ifemelu and Obinze are made staggeringly aware of their race and their colour, things that in their own country were not regarded as restrictive or a barrier to opportunities.

Verdict:

This was an interesting read, and the themes of race and identity in the modern world are topical. However, I feel it is very much an ‘adult’ novel.

- The main character describes a variety of sexual liasons in too much detail which is not appropriate to teenagers in the classroom at second level. This is a Feminist book and much more suited to third level literature class. also,

-The length at just over 600 pages could make it difficult for students to 

  continually engage with and sustain momentum

 -The flashback technique makes it difficult at times to follow the time line

-Ifemelu’s observations in her blog, in particular, become polemical and at 

 times didactic, expressing more the author’s views rather than those of the

 main character herself

-The differences between an African-American and an American-African, key ideas, are quite nuanced

                         H.C. Teacher Co. Donegal

I am Nigerian and I was curious to read this book as the theme of Race and Identity is a theme I deal with every day of my life here in Ireland. I could relate to lots of details (including the hairdressers -cornrows and relaxers etc!) However, I would NOT be at all happy for my daughter to be reading this book as a teenager because it contains lots of adult themes and scenarios and viewpoints, especially to do with anger against God, mocking Christianity and promoting sexual promiscuity in various forms. I would ask my daughter's school to remove this book from her curriculum.

C. Igbe N, Co.Dublin

Not appropriate for this age group. The fact that it relates an African viewpoint of life in America and England is very interesting and informative, but this does not justify using such an "adult" book which contains many strong opinions about Sex, Feminism, Atheism etc. in the classroom for a teenage audience.

Andy D, Co.Dublin

Verdict of irishParents: Not suitable to be used at second level for the reasons listed above. Also, here are some examples of highly sexualised passages which we feel would be inappropriate and uncomfortable (for both teacher and students) to be reading aloud in the classroom:

Curt admired "....her perfect breasts, her perfect butt........he wanted to suck her.....to lick honey from her nipple, to smear ice cream on her belly, as though it was not enough simply to lie bare skin to bare skin."

As teenagers, Ifemelu and Obinze have sex together:

"The first time she let him take off her bra, she lay on her back moaning softly........their warm entanglements on his bed when his mother was out....touching and kissing and sucking, hips moving in simulation."

Ifemelu works briefly as a type of Escort:

"She did not want to be here, did not want his active finger between her legs, did not want his sigh-moans in her ear, and yet she felt her body rousing to a sickening wetness.

She had lain on his bed, and when he placed her hand between his legs, she had curled and moved her fingers."

Ifemelu has sex with Blaine the first time they meet.

She imagines "them both with ginger on their lips, yellow curry licked off her body, bay leaves crushed beneath them"

She describes them "kissing in the living room and then her leading him to her bedroom....and his slipping on of the condom with such slow and clinical concentration."

Ifemelu has sex with Obinze after he marries someone else and he tells her: "This doesn't feel like cheating"

"She had always thought the expression "making love" a little maudlin; "having sex " felt truer and "fucking" was more arousing....." etc etc