Ngugi wa Thiong

‘o (Kenyan, 1938– )

Ngugi's writing concerns itself with the struggle for Kenyan independence. The political message of his play, I Will Marry When I Want (1977) led to his arrest and detention without trial in 1977. In the same year he renounced the use of the colonizer's language (English) and committed himself to writing only in his native tongue (Kikuyu). Weep Not, Child (1964), a beautifully written novel, re-creates the Mau Mau's fight against the oppressive white state. Ngugi focuses on the effects of political turmoil on the lives, and particularly the education of two young boys. The Mau Mau rebellion is also the binding theme in Petals of Blood (1977). A Grain of Wheat (1967) is arguably his most impressive work. Through flashbacks and multiple narratives, Ngugi weaves the compelling story of a village anxiously awaiting independence at the end of 1963. In 1982 Ngugi left Kenya to live in self-imposed exile in London.

Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Amos Tutuola. See AFRICA  EW