Starlight Spotlight on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

“Half of a Yellow Sun” Movie, 2013

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian writer, born and raised in Enugu (Eastern Nigeria). She was raised in an upper middle class home and developed a love for writing at a very early age, she wrote her first story at the tender age of five. She attributes her love for literature to the fact that she grew up in a very literary household and read a lot of books during her formative years, her father is an academic.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 

(Photo courtesy of www.classicsoulradio.org)

At the age of 19, she left Nigeria after a little over a year of Medical School to further her studies in the United States. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Eastern Connecticut State University and then when on to receive two Master’s degrees, one from John Hopkins University and the other from Yale. Her first novel, “Purple Hibiscus”, was written during her senior year at Eastern Connecticut State University and released four years later in 2003.

“Half of a Yellow Sun” was her second novel. Chimamanda has also published a collection of short stories titled, “The Thing Around Your Neck” and her most recent work is a third novel titled, “Americanah”. I have been a fan of Chimamanda’s ever since a friend of mine who had known her at Drexel University (where she studied for her first two years in the United States), told me about her. She is a breath of fresh air, a literary mind and an intellectual in a world where today’s youth are increasingly obsessed with pop culture flash and such superficial subjects as the lives of celebrities. I had often wondered where we would find the next wave of African intellectuals and who would be the Chinua Achebes, the Wole Soyinkas, the Camara Layes and the Kwame Nkrumahs of our time. Thankfully, I did not have to despair for long because Ms. Adichie came on the scene where she swooped down and saved the day! 

Chimamada Ngozi Adichie, The Danger of a Single Story, TED Talks (Video courtesy of www.youtube.com)

Among the many things that Chimamanda does such as working on her craft, holding book signings, doing interviews for various media outlets and more, she still finds the time to give back. She runs a yearly writing workshop in Lagos, Nigeria where she provides guidance, inspiration and mentoring to a whole new generation of up and coming Nigerian writers. She truly is a jewel of inestimable value.

Therefore, my joy knew no bounds when I discovered that her second novel, “Half of a Yellow Sun” was recently made into a movie, starring notable and highly accomplished actors Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton in the leading roles! Hurray!! Although Chimamanda has received dozens of awards and honors since the genesis of her writing career, I feel that having one of her books made into a movie is huge forward leap towards the author’s transition from being well-known and respected in the literary world to being discovered by a more mainstream audience. Let’s face it, the majority of the us will never be writers or members of the literary intelligencia, but anyone can watch and enjoy a movie. I am really excited that her work is being introduced to a whole new demographic, and a far more diverse one.

“Half of a Yellow Sun” centers around events surrounding the Biafran war as the characters in the novel experience it all from varying view points. It is a tale of violence, of terror, of death, sorrow and loss. However, it is also a tale of love and humanity and all the things that make up our common experience as citizens of planet earth (you know, things like infidelity and such, a common denominator in the lives of women the world over). Therefore, even though Chimamanda goes to great lengths to provide historical context for the events in her book, she never looses her readers by weighing us down with boring facts and figures.

"Half of a Yellow Sun" Movie Trailer, TIFF (Video courtesy of www.youtube.com)

One thing that I find very fascinating about the casting of Chiwetel Ejiofor in the leading male role is that his parents actually fled to the United Kingdom from Nigeria when the Biafran war broke out. He also unfortunately lost his father in a car accident in Nigeria, years later when the family returned for a visit. Therefore, there is no doubt that his personal experiences of such tragedy and loss will find expression in his interpretation of the script in this role. Life can be cruel, but this might be one of those instances when one might say that even our most difficult experiences can prepare us for a great destiny. Being no stranger to hurt and disappointment myself, I would say that I believe this to be true, as long as one does two things:

• Pick yourself back up and continue pushing forward.
• Learn the lesson or as Iyanla Vanzant would say, “Do the work”.

“Half of a Yellow Sun” was screened at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and will be having many other screenings in the coming months. This movie is Biyi Bandele’s directorial debut and it stars other amazing talents in supporting roles including: the very beautiful Anika Noni Rose, one of Nigeria’s best actresses of today Genevieve Nnaji and legendary songstress Onyeka Onwenu (whom I love and completely adore). Check it out folks, but for those who have read the novel, don’t have high hopes of it being faithful to or as good as the book. Movies based on books rarely are and this one is no exception. Three cheers for Chimamanda! Starlight salutes you!

XOXO,

Starlight.