Purple Hibiscus is an immersion into living in Nigeria during tumultuous times and an oppressive family

? UNDER THE LAMPLIGHT-

Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche’s Purple Hibiscus is an ode to growing up in Nigeria as we go through the social, economic, and cultural turmoil that Kambili and her brother Jaja — children of an influential and privileged businessman — experience. Living under the watchful and oppressive eye of their father, who aims to prevent them from experiencing true Nigeria by denying his culture and non-Christian beliefs, the children grow in a wealthy household rich with everything except love and freedom. A military coup turns their lives upside down as their domestically abused mother smuggles them to live with their aunt, a university professor who is on strike. With her, they share a cramped apartment with their cousins and estranged grandfather, who provides them with mythical tales under a kerosene light as power outages plague the nation. Despite the hardships, they have a bustling experience full of questions and discussions in an environment full of liberty and a sense of cultural identity.