Purple Hibiscus
is an exquisite novel about the emotional turmoil of adolescence, the
powerful bonds of family, and the bright promise of freedom.
Fifteen-year-old
Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a privileged life in Enugu,
Nigeria. They live in a beautiful house, with a caring family, and
attend an exclusive missionary school. They're completely shielded from
the troubles of the world. Yet, as Kambili reveals in her tender-voiced
account, things are less perfect than they appear. Although her Papa is
generous and well respected, he is fanatically religious and tyrannical
at home—a home that is silent and suffocating.
As the country
begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili and Jaja are sent to
their aunt, a university professor outside the city, where they
discover a life beyond the confines of their father’s authority. Books
cram the shelves, curry and nutmeg permeate the air, and their cousins’
laughter rings throughout the house. When they return home, tensions
within the family escalate, and Kambili must find the strength to keep
her loved ones together.