Google Doodle Celebrates Chinua Achebe’s 87th Birthday
Widely considered as the world’s greatest story tellers, award-winning Nigerian author and poet Chinua Achebe has written various classics including No Longer At Ease, Arrow of God, and his first book, Things Fall Apart. Today (November 16), the acclaimed author would have been 87 and Google has honored him with a custom Doodle.
Below is a statement from Google about Achebe’s Doodle;
“One man took it upon himself to tell the world the story of Nigeria through the eyes of its own people,” Google said in a statement. “Chinua Achebe (born Albert Chinualumogu Achebe) was the studious son of an evangelical priest. A student of English literature, he started writing in the 1950s, choosing English as his medium but weaving the storytelling tradition of the Igbo people into his books.”
“His characters were insiders — everyday people such as the village chief (in Things Fall Apart), the priest (in Arrow of God), or the school teacher (in A Man of the People). Through their stories, we witness a Nigeria at the crossroads of civilization, culture, and generations.”
“His pen brought to life the land and traditions of the Igbo: the hum of everyday village life; the anticipation and excitement of sacred masquerades; the stories of the elders and the honor of warriors; the joy of family and the grief of loss.”
“Considered by many to be the father of modern African literature, Achebe was awarded the Man Booker Prize in 2007. Surrounded by iconic images of his most famous literary works, today’s Doodle celebrates his legacy on what would have been his 87th birthday.”
Achebe is known for his widely read novel, Things Fall Apart, which sold over 12 million copies and was translated into more than 50 languages. Published in 1958, the novel portrays the clash between Nigeria’s white colonial government and the traditional culture of the indigenous people of Igbo. The story follows the life of a man, Okonkwo an Igbo leader and fearless warrior, who exiled and must come to grips with the change of his community that has submitted to the influence of Western colonizers. According to Aljazeera, the novel was listed by Time magazine in its list of the 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005.
Chinua Achebe died on March 21, 2013 at the age of 82.
With iconic images of Chinua Achebe’s most famous literary works, today’s #GoogleDoodle celebrates the Nigerian novelist’s birthday → https://t.co/0YFRvmbUZO pic.twitter.com/bR8Lxa2rje
— Google (@Google) November 16, 2017
Photo Credit: IStock
