Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe was written in 1959 and is one of the first great novels to come out of Nigeria, a country with a rich literary history, so I thought it was time to finally read it. It tells the story of Okonkwo, a strong man of an Ibo village, a warrior with three wives and many children.

This book gives the reader an inside look into African tribal life, and also shows what happens when the missionaries arrive and cultures clash. We see Okonkwo’s village life become divided and things begin to fall apart, leading to an ultimately tragic ending. A beautifully written book full of powerful images that will stay with me for a long time.