She was standing at the periphery of her own life, sharing a fridge and a toilet, a shallow intimacy, with people she did not know at all. People who lived in exclamation points.
They fascinated him, the unsubtle cowering of the almost rich in the presence of the rich, and the rich in the presence of the very rich; to have money, it seemed, was to be consumed by money. Obinze felt repulsion and longing; he pitied them, but he also imagined being like them.
Men’s grooming is never suspect in the way women’s grooming is – a well-dressed man does not worry that, because he is dressed well, certain assumptions might be made about his intelligence, his ability, or his seriousness. A woman, on the other hand, is always aware of how a bright lipstick or a carefully-put-together outfit might very well make others assume her to be frivolous.
Everybody is hungry in this country, even the rich men are hungry, but nobody is honest.
He made her like herself. With him, she was at ease; her skin felt as though it was her right size.
Her feet had turned into snails.
Saintliness is not a prerequisite for dignity.
If we ran Nigeria like this cell,” he said, “we would have no problems in this country. Things are so organized. Our cell has a Chief called General Abacha and he has a second in command. Once you come in, you have to give them some money. If you don’t, you’re in trouble.
Like how the government of General Abacha was using its foreign policy to legitimize itself in the eyes of other African countries.
Her entire body was invaded by millions of uncertainties.
America’s tribalisms – race, ideology, and region – became clear.
The writer had accused me of being ‘angry’, as though ‘being angry’ were something to be ashamed of. Of course I am angry. I am angry about racism. I am angry about sexism.
Why do you need so much outside of yourself? Why isn’t what you are enough?
Never speak of marriage as an achievement.
Our world is full of men and women who do not like powerful women.
She had always got along with Ifemelu’s mother, the easy relationship between two people who carefully avoided conversations of any depth.
She told him how she very much wanted God to exist but feared He did not...
That the problem was not about being human, but specifically about being a female human. For centuries, the world divided human beings into two groups and then proceeded to exclude and oppress one group. It is only fair that the solution to the problem acknowledge that.
Never apologize for working. You love what you do, and loving what you do is a great gift to give your child.
He was tired, it was not a physical fatigue, but a draining lassitude that numbed the margins of his mind.