Half of a Yellow Sun

Half of a Yellow Sun is a 2006 novel by Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Set in Nigeria in the 1960s, the story follows Ugwu, a teenage houseboy who has moved from his village to work in a university town; his master Odenigbo, a mathematics professor with revolutionary views; and Olanna, with whom Odenigbo is in love, the beautiful daughter of a wealthy Nigerian man. When the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970) breaks out, their lives are thrown into anarchy.

As a Bildungsroman, the primary themes are loyalty, betrayal, and conflict. Scholars note that Adichie narrates a love story that includes characters from the different regions and social classes of Nigeria, and how the war and encounters with refugees affected and changed them. Reactions to the novel varied upon publication were largely positive, with praise for the novel's characters and its depiction of the Biafran War, although some literary critics questioned the effectiveness of the narrative's pace. Half of a Yellow Sun won the 2007 Women's Prize for Fiction and was adapted into a film of the same name in 2013 by Biyi Bandele, and produced by Gail Egan and Andrea Calderwood.

In 2022, the novel was banned in the American school districts of Michigan, Florida, South Carolina, and Utah, citing its sexual and violent imagery.

Ugwu, a 13-year-old village boy, lives and serves as a houseboy to his master Odenigbo, a mathematics professor who often discusses the country's political problems with his friends. Odenigbo's girlfriend Olanna later moves in with them. Ugwu builds a strong relationship with his master and the girlfriend. Olanna is from a wealthy family and has a twin sister Kainene, who runs her father's company. Kainene also has a boyfriend Richard, an English writer who visits Nigeria to explore Igbo-Ukwu arts.

Four years later, the Hausa and Igbo people begin to have ethnic problems, which result in mass killing especially of the Igbos. Olanna's aunt and uncle get killed. The Igbos declare a new republic called Biafra, which corporates the southern region of the country. Odenigbo, Olanna, and their young daughter whom they call "Baby", and Ugwu moves to a refugee town called Umuahia. They experience food shortages, constant air raids and an environment of paranoia. Before the war, Odenigbo sleeps with a village girl Amala, who gives birth to his baby. When Olanna hears the news, she gets furious and sleeps with Richard, her sister's boyfriend. She later reunite with Odenigbo after receiving advice from Aunty Ifeka to forgive Odenigbo, as well as to keep Amala's child.

During the Biafran war, Olanna, Odenigbo, Baby, and Ugwu live with Kainene and Richard, where Kainene runs the refugee camp in Umuahia. Meanwhile the camp lacks resources and Kainene goes in search of aid but does not return, even after the war a few weeks later.

Half of a Yellow Sun is the second novel of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie after her debüt novel, Purple Hibiscus, published in 2003. She wrote the novel in three years, taking the title from an emblem on the Biafran flag. In a post-story section of the novel entitled "The Story behind the Book", where Adichie wrote about her inspiration to write the novel, she noted:

I grew up in the shadow of Biafra. It was as if the war had somehow divided the memories of my family. My parents have always wanted me to know, I think, that what matters is not what they went through but that they survived. I was concerned about people who lived in Biafra, telling their story in a way that gave it dignity and that is true".