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The River And The Source (2004)

by Margaret A. Ogola(Favorite Author)

4.13 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

9966882057 (ISBN13: 9789966882059)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Focus Books

review 1: I read this book in high School (as a compulsory literary text), really loved it, so much that I re-read it again and again. It also marked the beginning of my fascination with the Luo Culture. Last year, I was finally able to visit Kit-Mikayi, and I could still recall Mark Anthony Oloo Sigu's description of his homeland Seme, and was awed by the magnificence of the huge rocks. Beautiful narrative, lovely blend of the traditional and modern, not forgetting the strong women who keep the family's (and by extension the society's) river flowing....
review 2: I read this book countless times between the ages of 16 and 20 and to date it remains my all time favourite book by an African author. As a huge supporter of all forms of feminist movements, I loved the fact th... moreat most of the story lines covered over the 4 generations are led by very strong female characters; all the way from the headstrong Akoko in the 1800's to Awiti and her children (Vera specifically!!)in the late 1900's. Faith, hard work, discipline, love, family and knowledge of self stand out (for me) as the major themes in this book as well as issues such as AIDS in the 80's in Kenya. As a Kenyan, this book also makes for a much more interesting history lesson as we delve into pre-colonial Kenya at the start of the book and join the characters as they experience Caucasians for the first time, colonial government structures, education, Christianity...and much later in the 50's & 60's we catch a glimpse of the fight for independence from the view point of a community often accused (wrongly perhaps)of not having played as big of a role in that fight as the Central/Eastern tribes. I love how easily the context is set over the book's time frame and how fluidly the social, political, cultural settings change as time does. All in all...good book. less

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