Description

Originally published in Gikũy as Murogi wa Kagogo, Wizard of the Crow is a thought-provoking satirical novel that gives a surgical examination of the cult of dictatorship in Africa. The story is set in the imaginary Free Republic of Aburiria, and weaved around the Ruler and his coterie of court-poets, all of them the epitome of the dictum that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Then there is Kamiti, the mystical figure who is the subject of conjecture, and Nyawira, the underground revolutionary in the vanguard of agitating for change in Aburiria. In the end, Ngügĩ manages to vibrate with the magical realism of Gabriel Garcia Marquez; the brutal frankness of Dostoyevsky; and the lyrical beauty of African folklore.Yet, the most intriguing question as you read the novel is: Who is the Wizard of the Crow?“…great, spellbinding…probably the crowning glory of Ngügi’s life’s work … he has turned the power of storytelling into a weapon against totalitarianism.” Washington Post “A magisterial magic realist account of 20th-century African history. It is unreservedly a masterpiece Scotland on Sunday “..an epic farce, poking fun at Aburiria’s idiotocracy…written in the lyrical style of a master storyteller, perfect for reading – and laughing aloud. Time Magazine in a citation in which it voted the book as ONE OF THE 10 BEST BOOKS IN 2006. “…a terrifying reflection of how vulgar the human condition can become, but at the same time a highly entertaining and easily accessible fable.”