Things Fall Apart & Purple Hibiscus

In the first sentence there is an allusion to "Things Fall Apart"!!!!! Even though Purple Hibiscus is taking me a bit longer to read than Things Fall Apart, I enjoy it a lot better. TFA is in third-person point of view and PH is in 1st. I prefer first person pov because it sounds more personal but also more relatable. Rather than learning about a whole tribe, we learn more about this family. It also shows a more modern version of Africa. I feel that both books really show the religion in Africa, but I believe that PH contrasts the religion in TFA? I'm a bit confused by this but I think that the grandpa in PH follows the same religion that is talked about in TFA because of the mention of the word "chi". So perhaps the family in PH is showing the religion that the missionaries brought into Africa. I know pretty much nothing about religion, so what are these two religions called? Is one pagan? I also like the use of dialogue in PH. I felt that TFA was lacking dialogue so it's nice to have it in this book. They both portray Africa differently though. One similarity they show is the violence and death, but they both show different economic sides of Africa. TFA focuses on the poorer, tribal side of Africa when PH shows the more modern side. The names are still similar though, AND SO ARE THE YAMS! I like Jaja's name because that's Spanish for "haha". (Also Vitamin C is Spanish for Vitamin yes). When are these books supposed to take place? The only reason I'm asking is because PH sounds much more modern with the cars and big houses, so I'd like to see the time difference between these two narratives. And which parts of Africa do these two books show? I believe PH said it was Nigeria, but where was TFA?
Lastly, is there a reason why we read TFA first?
I'm excited to read the rest of this book and compare and contrast. I'm also excited for my journey to Africa in less than a month so that I can also compare and contrast with my own eyes.