Half of a Yellow Sun

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie sets Half of a Yellow Sun in Nigeria during the 1960s, as the country moves towards civil war. Among its central figures are Ugwu, a teenage domestic worker; Odenigbo, the mathematics professor who employs him; and Olanna, whose wealthy family background differs from Ugwu’s. Their relationships are disrupted by the conflict of 1967–1970.

Published in 2006, the novel connects its characters’ private lives with displacement and questions of identity in a country shaped by colonial rule. The title belongs to a work of historical fiction, not a documentary history; its characters provide a way into the consequences of war for individuals and communities.