Girls at War: And Other Stories

Very impressed. I am glad I read it again after all these years. The story of the Mad Man is very funny. I was cracking up while reading it.

Did you know that free schooling was only briefly offered in Nigeria? There's a poignant story about it here. I learned a lot about Nigeria from these stories. Sometimes, the stories seemed to end a little too abruptly, but I guess that's part of the story format: it has to end sooner than a short novel, anyway. Mr. Achebe is a fine storyteller and he has many interesting things to say about the people and customs of Nigeria. I recommend this book, but only after first reading his classic novel about 19th century Ibo tribe people, Things Fall Apart. After reading these stories, I was both attracted to Nigeria and repelled by it (I've never been to Africa). Achebe does a good job of capturing the ambivalence aroused by Nigeria's exotic nature (to Americans) mixed with its societal dysfunctions. Diximus.

This is an impressive collection of short stories that covers a twenty-year period of Achebe's writing. They also cover a period of history in his native Nigeria that spans from the late colonial period to the Biafran war. In them Achebe explores various aspects of a predominant theme in his work, i.e. tradition vs. modernism in his country (as introduced by British colonial administration). The various stories offer glimpses into the lives of people from various classes and walks of life. Achebe has a concise and eloquent writing style; he has an almost singular talent for making very pertinent observations in an extremely pithy fashion. Thus, for example, in the few pages of a story like "Dead Man's Path," Achebe brings to life the problems which ensue from the drive for quick modernization, the desire to adhere to tradition and the hypocrisy of Nigeria's colonial administrators. Also impressive is Achebe's mastery of narrative styles, i.e. first person, omiscient, etc. These stories can be read on their own, or as a supplement to Achebe's similarly powerful novels.