Ngugi dared to dream big in a time of war

As the Mau Mau war rages on, Ngugi’s father loses all his property, the stress takes its toll on him and he takes it out on Ngugi’s mother and the children by disowning them.

Ngugi poignantly describes this in the book when he writes, “It is not a good thing to have your own father deny you as one of his children.”

Life was difficult for the young Ngugi but he enjoyed going to school.

One evening, his mother calls him and solemnly tells him there will be days “you may not always get a midday meal” because they are now poor.

He makes a decision that no matter the obstacles, he will always do his best.

Most readers who grew up in the rural areas without electricity will identify with Ngugi when he recalls “the nights I could not read because we had run out of firewood and paraffin.”

His boyhood fortitude and resolve is remarkable — it is what has made many academic giants rise from ashes to sit in places of honour.

Apart from their literary value, Ngugi’s childhood memoirs (which end just before he joins Alliance High School) are like a motivational book, encouraging us to dream big and maximise our potential — for it doesn’t matter what background we came from — we can all become great men and women like Ngugi has done.

He rose from a poor peasant family into world literary fame — with his books studied in universities across the world.

Ngugi shares some experiences that parallel our own, others that are at odds with today’s fast changing world, but always, the bottom line is that he dared to dream big in a most improbable time — in a time of war.

The writer is the publishing manager of Macmillan Kenya Publishers.

Email: johnmwazemba@yah-oo.co.uk