Purple Hibiscus Response

  When we first began reading Purple Hibiscus I didn't really know what to expect. I knew that it was a historical fiction novel, but I did not realize the how deep the book would be. Adichie includes many serious topics in her story, including abuse, government, and religion. These topics can be very controversial, but Adichie does an amazing job of presenting the topics in a factual way. So far I am enjoying the novel because it has a lot of information regarding Nigerian culture and history. The book serves as a learning experience not just about Nigeria, but about the issues faced by the characters.
  For my reading focus, I chose culture. I chose this topic because I wanted to explore the differences between the Nigerian and English culture present in Enugu. So far, I have noticed a cultural tension between Papa and his father. Papa enforces Catholicism and English on his wife and kids, while Papa-Nnukwu is more free-spirited with his idol worship and Igbo language. Papa thinks the way he does because he was impacted by English culture when Britain controlled Nigeria. I am very interested in seeing how culture develops throughout the novel, as well as how it affects the lives of Kambili and Jaja.