Description

A moving account of an exceptional life and a piercing critique of imperialism, Home and Exile is above all a book that articulates persuasively why literature matters. Achebe challenges the West’s portrayal of Africa in its culture and how this portrayal has been used to advance colonialism. Stories are a real source of power in the world, and Achebe proves that to imitate the literature of another culture is to give that power away.

Incisive, illuminating and intimate, this book by one of Africa’s most influential writers also offers readers a rare insight into his personal life and education.

Publisher Review

The writer in whose company the prison walls fell down — NELSON MANDELA A remarkable man . . . a huge inspiration — CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Delves deep into the psyche of oppressed peoples and concludes that it is vital for them to take back their own stories * * Observer * * A master narrative * * New York Times Book Review * * Achebe reveals more than he has before about his parents, his education and his early career before becoming a writer — ALASTAIR NIVEN * * Independent * * A distillation of the thoughts and feelings of one of the world’s foremost contemporary writers * * Sunday Herald * * Achebe reveals the inner workings of the human conscience through the predicament of Africa and his own intellectual life . . . A story of the triumph of the mind, told in the words of one of the century’s most gifted writers — HENRY LOUIS GATES JR. Spare and moving . . . A rare opportunity to glimpse a bit of the man behind the monumental novels * * Chicago Tribune * * Soulful . . . A book that anyone concerned with advancing social justice and human dignity should read * * Seattle Times * * A welcome book for Achebe’s many admirers * * Kirkus * *