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jslive's review against another edition
4.0
"An orchestra of minorities" by Chigozie Obioma is "epic" in more ways than one: long, wide-ranging and somewhat difficult to read because of the strange narrative structure. The story is crushing and the characters exasperating, but I'm glad I read it.
honeycomblibrary's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
happilyevelynafter's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
amrazik11's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
torihoo's review against another edition
2.0
A good story with moments of beautiful prose, but it felt about twice as long as it needed to be.
janetthetrigger's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
cc_loves_books's review against another edition
4.0
I thought this was a beautiful and compelling book, and was not bothered by the style of narration as some other reviewers seemed to be. It felt to me like a Greek tragedy, with the chi acting as the chorus.
I give the author the benefit of the doubt that he is calling attention to the toxic masculinity that brings downfall to his characters, rather than excusing it. I agree, however, that the female characters in this book deserved more attention and development, Ndali and the German nurse in particular.
I want to give this book five stars because of its beauty, it’s lush scenes, and imagery. It’s treatment of female characters earn it only three stars, however, leading me to settle at four.
I give the author the benefit of the doubt that he is calling attention to the toxic masculinity that brings downfall to his characters, rather than excusing it. I agree, however, that the female characters in this book deserved more attention and development, Ndali and the German nurse in particular.
I want to give this book five stars because of its beauty, it’s lush scenes, and imagery. It’s treatment of female characters earn it only three stars, however, leading me to settle at four.
scottxbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
blairmahoney's review against another edition
4.0
The second novel in a row that Obioma has made the shortlist for the Booker Prize for. He missed out again on the main prize this year, but I think this is an interesting novel with a unique perspective, narrated as it is by the 'chi' or guardian spirit of a young Nigerian man who falls in love with a woman seemingly out of his social class. The novel is billed as being some kind of a modern rewriting of The Odyssey but it's really not. The relationship is tangential at best. The main character strikes more more as a Job figure, subjected to endless misfortune and suffering which he mostly submits to meekly until he returns to Nigeria a broken man from his experiences.
shimmery's review against another edition
4.0
Chinonso has little else apart from his poultry farm and has made peace with this – until he meets Ndali. One night as he is driving home from buying more fowl, he comes across a distraught woman about to throw herself from a bridge. He throws two of the birds he has just bought over the drop to discourage the woman from jumping herself – this becomes the first of many sacrifices he will make for her. For Ndali comes from a rich, educated family, who consider her too good for Chinonso when the two fall in love.
This is a difficult book, the story bleak and with little hope. Told from the point of view of Chinonso’s guardian spirit, or chi, the story references and draws inspiration from The Odyssey as Chinonso must overcome years of awful adversity in attempts to be with the woman he loves. Chinonso’s chi has lived several lifetimes in different hosts and has seen Nigeria change a lot during that time – tradition is contrasted with modernity, with Chinonso representing the former and Ndali the latter.
The chi says:
‘it is the ‘White Man who has trampled on your traditions. It is he who has seduced and slept with your ancestral spirits. It is to him that the gods of your land have submitted their heads, and he has shaved them, clean, down to the skin of their scalps. He has flogged the high priests and hanged your rulers. He has tamed the animals of your totems and imprisoned the souls of your tribes. He has spat in the face of your wisdoms, and your valiant mythologies are silent before him.’
Wisdom and tradition carry little weight in the new Nigeria, with everyone expected to receive university degrees and own impressive houses and cars. Ndali recognises this, comparing the likes of Chinonso to the captive birds he keeps, saying ‘see what the powerful have done to us in this country. See what they have done to you. And weak things.’ It is because of his lack of wealth and education that the couple cannot be together, and his desperation to recover these make him and many like him vulnerable to predators.
The story is not totally without hope, however. The world of the guardian spirits is wise and forgiving in its omniscience, and the conscience each man holds in his interior world is shown as being powerful enough to overcome the cruelty of the exterior world. We see the villains of the story transformed by the end, and though the end too is tragic, it is also human – this seems to be what the story is about in the end, the struggle of having a good soul when the world of man it is forced to live in (particularly of white men, I should add) is so often flawed.
The descriptions of the natural world and the spirit world are frequently beautiful, but I thought some of the metaphors could have done with a little more subtlety. Overall I found myself very invested in Chinonso's story and felt like I had gone on a journey with him by the time I finished it. I think I'll be thinking about this for a long time after reading it.
This is a difficult book, the story bleak and with little hope. Told from the point of view of Chinonso’s guardian spirit, or chi, the story references and draws inspiration from The Odyssey as Chinonso must overcome years of awful adversity in attempts to be with the woman he loves. Chinonso’s chi has lived several lifetimes in different hosts and has seen Nigeria change a lot during that time – tradition is contrasted with modernity, with Chinonso representing the former and Ndali the latter.
The chi says:
‘it is the ‘White Man who has trampled on your traditions. It is he who has seduced and slept with your ancestral spirits. It is to him that the gods of your land have submitted their heads, and he has shaved them, clean, down to the skin of their scalps. He has flogged the high priests and hanged your rulers. He has tamed the animals of your totems and imprisoned the souls of your tribes. He has spat in the face of your wisdoms, and your valiant mythologies are silent before him.’
Wisdom and tradition carry little weight in the new Nigeria, with everyone expected to receive university degrees and own impressive houses and cars. Ndali recognises this, comparing the likes of Chinonso to the captive birds he keeps, saying ‘see what the powerful have done to us in this country. See what they have done to you. And weak things.’ It is because of his lack of wealth and education that the couple cannot be together, and his desperation to recover these make him and many like him vulnerable to predators.
The story is not totally without hope, however. The world of the guardian spirits is wise and forgiving in its omniscience, and the conscience each man holds in his interior world is shown as being powerful enough to overcome the cruelty of the exterior world. We see the villains of the story transformed by the end, and though the end too is tragic, it is also human – this seems to be what the story is about in the end, the struggle of having a good soul when the world of man it is forced to live in (particularly of white men, I should add) is so often flawed.
The descriptions of the natural world and the spirit world are frequently beautiful, but I thought some of the metaphors could have done with a little more subtlety. Overall I found myself very invested in Chinonso's story and felt like I had gone on a journey with him by the time I finished it. I think I'll be thinking about this for a long time after reading it.