Angie Greaves spoke to Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche this week about her book Half of a Yellow Sun and her feelings about its adaptation into a film (in cinemas from Friday).
Half of a Yellow Sun follows Olanna and Kainene, two wealthy Nigerian twins, as they make very different life choices on their return from Britain to a newly independent 60s Nigeria.
Preoccupied by romantic entanglements and sisterly betrayal, the events of their personal lives loom larger than politics as they become caught up in the events of the Nigerian civil war.
The novel received wide acclaim upon its release, winning 2007’s Orange Prize for Fiction and being included in the New York Times’ 100 most notable books of the year.
While Chimamanda wasn’t involved with the film she trusted the director, Biyi Bandele, to make the right decisions.
‘I was certain he wasn’t going to make a bad film. It’s true that the result is quite faithful to the book but it’s still its own thing.’
‘Of course I didn’t imagine that you couldn’t turn a book of this sort into a film of two hours and include everything. I think the choices he made were the right ones. I was very moved by the film.’
The adaptation stars Thandie Newton and Chiwetel Ejiofor and will be released on the 11th April 2014.
Watch the trailer and see the stills below to find out more
