Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's new novel is Americanah.
From her Q & A with Kate Kellaway for the Observer:
You write brilliantly about love. What do you think makes a love last?--Marshal Zeringue
I wish I knew… if I did, I would market it. Lasting love has to be built on mutual regard and respect. It is about seeing the other person. I am very interested in relationships and, when I watch couples, sometimes I can sense a blindness has set in. They have stopped seeing each other. It is not easy to see another person.
Have you experienced love at first sight?
No, but I would like to.
You write with satirical precision about the way black people are patronised in the US and the UK – often in a well-meaning way. How widespread is this condescension? One of your characters – Kimberley – describes all black people as "beautiful".
It is very widespread. There is a deep discomfort about the subject. People struggle to be honest and ordinary. I wish race didn't matter. I wish that Kimberley – who is a character I love and not a racist – didn't think all black people beautiful. It is worse in...[read on]
