I plowed through this novel earnestly; it was a page turner for me because, well, how many times have I come across a female African protagonist living and observing race in the United States? When people say there are no more stories to tell, I can give them this book for a quite original story (even though it really shouldn't be, sadly it is). There are many stories out there, many voices.

Americanah follows Ifemelu back and forth through time and continents -- she's been in American 13 years and she's heading back to Nigeria -- and she traverses a lot of physical and mental territory. So much of this novel made me think, made me look at many every day things different, and enlightened me to a lot of things I simply did not know.

And while the structure is ebbs and flows over time, it's not as seamless as it might seem. I was jolted at times, but it's a tiny fault. I'm excited that Lupita Nyong'o bought the rights to this novel and hopefully will present a great adaptation of this on film.


4.5/5!