At times this book is quite good. However it is also exhaustingly repetitious and by the end of it I couldn't bare the protagonist's constant pissing and moaning and unearned dissatisfaction any more. 
 Adichie writes great prose and I liked the first half of this book. The author has a keen eye for using small, mundane details to reveal deeper truths about people and situations. At least initially, this book felt insightful and authentic and I was really into it. 
 Eventually though this book just wore me out and squandered much of its sizable potential. It doesn't have much of a plot and the characters don't change or have narrative arcs. Potential characters and plots are abruptly introduced and just as abruptly dropped in a slipshod way. Characters just stand around and have endless conversations about race and politics that are sometimes well written (when they are not stilted and contrived), often accurate but not as groundbreaking or original as the author seems to think they are. If this book had been much shorter I wouldn't have minded this narrative aimlessness and lack of character development but I expect more from a book that is almost 500 pages long. Any good points were just beaten into the ground long before the book ended. 
 Frankly I also found the protagonist Ifemelu pretty insufferable too as the book wore on. She is a self righteous hypocritical scold who sneers and whines her way through a life of cushy jobs, doting boyfriends and financial stability. At times having such a judgmental protagonist works because we the audience get the benefit of the extremely critical, analytical eye that Ifemelu directs towards everyone (but never herself of course) but this too proves wearying as the book progresses. 
 I don't have a problem with unsympathetic characters per se. I have loved books about people far more despicable than the obnoxious Ifemulu. However there were several things that worked against the character development here. First, Ifemulu is a totally static character. Her perspective never changes despite what happens to her. Secondly she has a pretty easy life so the constant resentment seems totally unearned. Thirdly, no one ever calls Ifemelu on anything and she is never placed in the position of being wrong or being denied anything she wants. I have no doubt the author intended me to find Ifemelu 100% in the right in every situation which is frustrating and dull storytelling. Ironically by trying to create a flawless character Adichie created a badly flawed and poorly designed one. 
 It was depressing that a book with such a strong beginning and such flashes of promise ended up just spinning its wheels and growing increasingly stale as it proceeded. There are some stretches are sharp, clever observational writing here but it is drowning in filler.