#arrowofgod

The world is like a mask dancing. If you want to see it well, you do not stand in one place. http://dlvr.it/TK0fc4

"...there was a writer named Chinua Achebe in whose company the prison walls fell down." ~Chinua Achebe Toni Morrison wrote, "African literature is incomplete and unthinkable without the works of Chinua Achebe. For passion, intellect and crystalline prose, he is unsurpassed." Achebe's juxtaposition (most especially in THINGS FALL APART) is second to none📌 Books of many contrasts: Colonialism and Traditional culture; Animism and Christianity; the Ignorant and the Aware... Those works of literature remain Achebe's magnum opus. In the masterly novels, he brilliantly imagines the lives of three generations of an African community as their world is upended by the forces of colonialism from the first arrival of the British to the waning days of empire. #chinuaachebe #thingsfallapart #arrowofgod #nolongeratease #juveh #sammyjuveh #throwbackthursdays #review #books https://www.instagram.com/p/ChqSBdpI0iq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Set in the Igbo heartland of eastern Nigeria, one of Africa's best-known writers describes the conflict between old and new in its most poignant aspect: the personal struggle between father and son. Ezeulu, the headstrong chief priest of the god Ulu, is worshipped by the six villages of Umuaro. But his authority is increasingly under threat—from rivals within his tribe, from functionaries of the colonial government, and even from his own family members. Yet he believes himself to be untouchable: surely he is an arrow in the bow of his God? Armed with this belief, he is prepared to lead his people, even if it is towards their own destruction. But his people will not be dominated so easily. Spare and powerful, Arrow of God is an unforgettable portrayal of the loss of faith, and the downfall of a man in a society forever altered by colonialism. ~goodreads "...Ezeulu died too for we hear of his demented last days. So in the end, only Umuaro and its leaders saw the final outcome. To them the issue was simple. Their god had taken sides with them against his headstrong and ambitious priest and thus upheld the wisdom of their ancestors – that no man however great was greater than his people; that no one ever won judgement against his clan. If this was so, then Ulu had chosen a dangerous time to uphold that truth for in destroying his priest he had also brought disaster on himself, like the lizard in the fable who ruined his mother’s funeral by his own hand. For a deity who chose a moment such as this to chastise his priest or abandon him before his enemies was inciting people to take liberties; and Umuaro was just ripe to do so. The Christian harvest which took place a few days after Obika’s death saw more people than even Goodcountry could have dreamed. In his extremity many a man sent his son with a yam or two to offer to the new religion and to bring back the promised immunity. Thereafter any yam harvested in his fields was harvested in the name of the son." Proverbs: A toad does not run in the daytime unless something is after it. Every lizard lies on its belly, so we cannot tell which has a bellyache. #juveh #sammyjuveh #review #arrowofgod https://www.instagram.com/p/ChFkYh_oIY8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

"...I have traveled in Olu, and I have traveled in Igbo, and I can tell you that there is no escape from the white man. He has come." Arrow of God explores how the Igbo spirituality and religious life dies an ignominious death when confronted by Christianity. Christianity is backed by the white man's military and political power. As a result, Christianity is also identified with the source of the power. Ezeulu, the chief priest of several Nigerian villages, is a prominent member of the Igbo people. So prominent, in fact, that he is invited to join the British colonial administration. But when he refuses to be a “white man’s chief” and is thrown in jail, Ezeulu’s influence begins to wane, as the resentful decisions he makes from prison have adverse effects on his people. As Christian missionaries flood Ezeulu’s villages, Western culture may very well unravel the traditions he has spent his life protecting. Ezeulu sent his son to learn the religion of the white man after Okperi and Umuaro went to war over a piece of land which did not belong to Umuaro. "...and you blamed the white man for stepping in. Have you not heard that when two brothers fight, a stranger reaps the harvest?" "...You must not forget one thing. We have shown the white man the way to our house and given him a stool to sit on. If we now want him to go away again, we must either wait until he is tired of his visit or we must drive him away." When the people of Umuaro were faced with famine because the Chief Priest of Ulu refuses to break tradition, the catechist at the church offers protection so the people can harvest their yams. When Ezeulu's son Obika dies, the people interpret that as a sign that You was punishing his priest. With Ezeulu's power broken, Umuaro turns to the Christian God for help. #review #books #chinuaachebe #arrowofgod #juveh #sammyjuveh https://www.instagram.com/p/ChFjV66IfSd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

🅰🆁🆁🅾🆆 🅾🅵 🅶🅾🅳 "...it is praiseworthy to be brave and fearless my son, but sometimes it is better to be a coward. We often stand in the compound of a coward to point at the ruins where a brave man used to live. The man who has never submitted to anything will soon submit to the burial mat." Set in the Igbo heartland of eastern Nigeria, one of Africa's best-known writers describes the conflict between old and new in its most poignant aspect: the personal struggle between father and son. Ezeulu, the headstrong chief priest of the god Ulu, is worshipped by the six villages of Umuaro. But his authority is increasingly under threat—from rivals within his tribe, from functionaries of the colonial government, and even from his own family members. Yet he believes himself to be untouchable: surely he is an arrow in the bow of his God? Armed with this belief, he is prepared to lead his people, even if it is towards their own destruction. But his people will not be dominated so easily. Spare and powerful, Arrow of God is an unforgettable portrayal of the loss of faith, and the downfall of a man in a society forever altered by colonialism My collection of proverbs: When a handshake goes beyond the elbow, we know it has turned to another thing. The bird Eneke-nti-oba. When his friends asked him why he was always on the wing, he replied: "men of today have learnt to shoot without missing, and so I have learnt to fly without perching. The world is like a Mask dancing. If you want to see it well, you do not stand in one place. My spirit tells me that those who do not befriend the white man today will be saying had we known tomorrow. It is not bravery for a man to beat his wife. Wisdom is like a goatskin bag; every man carries his own. The fly that has no one to advise it follows the corpse into he grave. A man who asks questions does not lose his way; that is what our fathers taught us. If my enemy speaks the truth, I will not say because it is spoken by my enemy I will not listen. #juveh #sammyjuveh #arrowofgod #chinuaachebe #review #books #theafricantrilogy https://www.instagram.com/p/CgmrY7IIJgF/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

S/O to @google for showing love to ONE OF THE GREATS! #ChinuaAchebe #FatherOfModernAfricanLiterature #ThingsFallApart #NoLongerAtEase #ManOfThePeople #ArrowOfGod #AnthillsOfTheSavannah #NaijaGriot

#booknerd #bookworm #booktherapy #ChinuaAchebe #ArrowofGod #sooooogood #begoodtoyourself #fortheloveofbooks #fortheloveofafricanliterature #thankful #grateful