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americanah cover chimamanda ngozi adichie

It's that time of year again! Hunker down with your fellow Baton Rougeans and dig into the East Baton Rouge Library's literary selection of the year for its 14th annual One Book One Community initiative: Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Voted one of the "10 Best Books of 2013" by the editors of the New York Times Book Review, the novel follows Ifemelu and Obinze, who are young and in love when they depart military-ruled Nigeria for the West. Beautiful, self-assured Ifemelu heads for America, where despite her academic success, she is forced to grapple with what it means to be black for the first time. Quiet, thoughtful Obinze had hoped to join her, but with post-9/11 America closed to him, he instead plunges into a dangerous, undocumented life in London. Fifteen years later, they reunite in a newly democratic Nigeria, and reignite their passion—for each other and for their homeland.

In an exciting slate of events throughout the spring, readers young and old can engage in their own investigation of the book—exploring its historical nuances and significance; asking questions about its author, its main characters, the historical context of the story and its writing, and its international reception. Oh, and there will be some fun parties too. Find a complete list of parish-wide events at ebrpl.com or ReadOneBook.org.