Elderism #66

October 6th, 2009

Wheelchair-bound after a 1990 car accident that cost him the use of both his legs, Bard professor Chinua Achebe, the author of the brutal and awesome Things Fall Apart, is releasing his first book in more than 20 years. An essay collection about the 78 year-old Nigerian’s literary upbringing, the book barely mentions the car accident; as a Reuters story put it,

“‘It is better to talk about the things that belong to all of us. One is more comfortable doing that,’ Achebe said, running his hands down his still legs.”