Chinua Achebe’s 'Things Fall Apart' (1958) is the most widely read book in modern African literature. It was written in response to European novels that depicted Africans as 'savages' without a complex culture. Achebe chose to write in English to reach a global audience, but he infused the language with Igbo proverbs and rhythms to maintain its cultural soul. The novel tells the story of Okonkwo and the impact of British colonialism on his village. Achebe believed in 'the novelist as teacher,' arguing that art should serve a social purpose by restoring the dignity of people who had been misrepresented by history. His work opened the door for generations of African writers to tell their own stories on their own terms.