Things Fall Apart Add a review

Things Fall Apart is a 1958 novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. Achebe's debut novel, written when he was working at the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation, was first published in London by Heinemann on 17 June 1958.

The novel is set in Colonial Nigeria and portrays the story of Okonkwo, a traditional influential leader of the fictional Igbo clan of Umuofia, who opposes colonialism and early Christianity. The novel's title was taken from a verse of "The Second Coming", a 1919 poem by Irish poet W. B. Yeats. It formed the first part of Achebe's "African trilogy" which include his later novels No Longer at Ease and Arrow of God.

Things Fall Apart is regarded as a milestone in African literature. It gained critical acclaim and popularity upon publication, and has been translated into over fifty languages. It was listed on Time's "100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005". The novel has had several adaptations, including Okonkwo, a 1961 radio drama by the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation and Things Fall Apart, a 1971 film which starred Princess Elizabeth of Tooro.