Guest Author - J. Claire K. Niala

It was with great trepidation that I picked up half of a Yellow Sun. Having devoured her first offering, Purple Hibiscus, I was worried that Adichie may not have another novel in her. Many young writers start off with great promise only for their talent to seemingly fizzle out by the time that they are producing later manuscripts - especially those that are lauded with critical acclaim early on.

However, I was not disappointed. Chinua Achebe was right when he said that 'Adichie came almost fully made.' For a young person to write so tellingly about war is impressive. The Nigerian - Biafran War that galvanised the country from 1967 - 1970 is a critical part of modern Nigerian History.

What Adichie does so well is to draw you into the story from the point of view of 2 sisters and the characters that fill their lives. Whether it is their lovers, household staff, friends or family these 2 enigmatic and powerful African women enable you to understand that from the point of view of (wo)men on the street - war is not a strategy they have been planning, it can quite often be something that happens upon them. That said, that does not mean that they cannot become fully fledged players in something that may have not been of their original design or intent.

Amazingly as things go from bad to worse, the sense of hope is not lost. Adichie depicts scenes of great despair and the varying ways in which the human condition deals with it. Whether it be through escapism, madness or sheer denial. What binds us together or tears us aapart in times of war is our common humanity and the sympathy with which she portrays her characters allows us to completely believe in their story.

Adichie avoids common cliches, her characters are neither good or bad though they may be trying to attain hapless goals. They are complex portraits of people who both have strengths and weaknesses that allow us as the reader to see something of ourselves in them. The cuckold, the possessive mother in law, the lover who waits for their beloved against all odds. They all have other qualities that make them more than just a unidimensional idea.

It is impossible by the end of the book not to want to understand more about this grim period in Nigerian history. One can only imagine the healing that was /is required. Adichie leaves you with a clear idea of what happened and yet a yearning to carry on learning about their stories and lives.