What did you learn about Nigeria's civil war from reading this novel?
Created: 08/26/16
Replies: 15
Join Date: 10/15/10
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Join Date: 06/16/11
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I learned a lot and found out how ignorant I am of life in much of the world. Had to do a bit of research to become familiar with what was happening in these people's lives. I think too often I forget the existence of about half the world and have no clue how they live.
Join Date: 06/11/11
Posts: 6
Unfortunately my family and I were living there at the time of the war and I am all too aware of what happened. My family was evacuated in 1967 and many of our Biafran friends lost their lives in the war. I thought that the author's portrayal of the war was quite real and it took me back to that time in my life. I have always read any book written about the war and this novel did not disappoint.
Join Date: 10/12/11
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Join Date: 08/01/16
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I learned a great deal about this time in history. I hate to admit that I was totally ignorant of the events of that time. I had heard about the Biafrans and, shame on me, did not try to educate myself about what was taking place.
This was one of the reasons I was so pleased to have received this book
Join Date: 02/18/15
Posts: 497
I learned how deeply embedded the feeling of hatred and prejudice extent into the different tribes. The bombings, the hunger left so many displaced. While I don't know if this war was a "Religious war", certainly religion played a part in the divisions among the tribes'
Join Date: 06/16/11
Posts: 17
I learned more about the war at the micro or human level, but there is still much I don't understand at the macro level, i.e., the origins of the war, how it was ended, and the immediate and lingering impacts on the Biafrans. I do feel motivated to learn much more on this subject.
Join Date: 10/15/10
Posts: 3442
You might find our "beyond the book" article for Half a Yellow Sun useful for a brief history of the Biafran conflict https://www.bookbrowse.com/mag/btb/index.cfm/book_number/1860/half-of-a-yellow-sun#btb - Davina, BB Editor
Join Date: 06/16/11
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Join Date: 05/26/11
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It seemed a brief section of this particular novel to me. I admit to not knowing much about this war; I think all of the wars in Africa seem very distant and as they seem to be very tribal-oriented, I think they are easy to ignore. Although the book indicated an end to this particular conflict, I believe that things in Nigeria are not so wonderful today. I was told just about 5 years ago by a professor from Nigeria that it is completely unsafe for an American to go there. His exact words were, "You WILL be kidnapped." He said that even his visits there were dangerous and his family had to come to the hotel to visit him; he could not go to them because he had lived in the US for several years.
Join Date: 06/11/14
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