THE BOY GIFT

by Meja Mwangi

"You will not believe the evil that has fallen on this valley. You cannot imagine the sadness, and the madness, that a little boy has brought on us. People have gone wild with talk of magic and witchcraft, and some are ready to commit murder over a baby." Toma Tomei, a father of nine daughters, must have a son in order to succeed his own father as the paramount chief of Happy Valley. Trouble starts brewing, however, when his wife gives birth to a light-skinned, green-eyed baby. Such a strange and mysterious child has never before been seen in Happy Valley. According to the clan's laws on succession, the boy must look like him, if Tomei is to succeed in his quest for the throne. Taboo and superstition come to a boil during the search for a successor to the throne, as the appearance of a boy causes fear and suspicion, arousing hostility among a gentle and harmonious people.

184 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2006

About the author

Meja Mwangi began his writing career in the 1970s, a decade after his more well-known compatriots such as Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Grace Ogot had been publishing their works. When he burst onto the scene with the award-winning Kill Me Quick in 1973, Mwangi was hailed in various quarters as a rising star in the East African literary constellation who was helping to disprove Taban lo Liyong's oft-cited claim that East Africa was a literary desert (Taban 1965, Nazareth 1976). Since then, Meja Mwangi has gone on to establish himself as one of the most prolific of Kenyan writers, publishing eleven novels in seventeen years in addition to short stories, children's books and working with a variety of projects in film. Mwangi's works have received awards in Kenya and abroad, they have been translated into six languages, and there are film versions of two of his novels.

For many Kenyan writers, the armed resistance to British colonialism in Kenya, which came to be known as the Mau Mau revolt and reached its height in the 1950s, was a far-reaching experience. [Meja Mwangi' Mau Mau novel] Weapon of Hunger is perhaps [his] best book yet. The picture he paints of the relentless quest for modern Africa is grim. What is most depressing, is that there seem to be no solutions. Western philanthropists, such as Jack Rivers, are portrayed in a favourable light as sincere people. All their energies, however, are expended on trying to understand Africa's problems and once they understand them they realise that the problems are beyond them. As for the Africans themselves, they could have provided solutions, but since they are lined up in warring factions, that is impossible. While the two sides fight on to the finish, will million of ordinary people continue to starve to dead? That is the questions which Meja Mwangi asks himself and which he asks the readers of Weapon.
(Excerpt from: Lynn Mansure, Weekly Review)

Reviews

[mwana · Rating 5 out of 5]

So what do you do when you want to become Chief Councillor? You need a son but somehow you have only managed to get nine daughters. Your pregnant wife is in hospital, having given birth the previous night and upon arrival you are ready to find out if you got yet another girl, or hopefully a boy. Toma Tomei is in this situation.



Well, gods be praised, it's a boy. Only there is a small problem with baby Tomei. Newborn son of Grace and Toma Tomei. The little boy is white!. Toma could not believe that his baby looked so strange.



"You say it is not sick?" he asked her, confounded.
"It's perfectly normal," the Day Matron assured him.
"And it is not bewitched?"
"It's not witchcraft."
"Why is it... different?"
"Why?" said the matron, exasperated."Because it is different.

Toma faced a lot of shame because of the appearance of his newborn. But his wife was so happy, she called the little boy, Gift. His sisters adored him too. Only Toma and his main rival for Chief Councillor, Old Noah, had a problem with Gift.

Old Noah conspired with the town witchdoctor, Muti, to sabotage Toma's chances of getting a son.

Muti required a pure white cockerel to see if he could fix the problem when Toma went to visit. Pleasant opportunity for the charlatan to fleece his desperate clients. He would perform a dance then ask his client to "feed the spirits" After which they would stoke the fire and watch the strange man perform a dance while tossing around chicken bones. Then he would provide a solution or prediction that he quite essentially pulled out of his ass.

The story goes on to be dramatic with gut wrenching scenes out of a Spielberg thriller.



Meja Mwangi, much like he did with The Mzungu Boy, weaves a story that is scenic of colonial Kenya. There was humour in spades. The entire situation is resolved but after tension worthy of Hitchcock's recognition. The questions raised about identity. Should we have a predisposed notion of how to treat various people because of their skin colour? Why is the girl child of "less value" than the boy child? Why is the boy child a sign of "prestige"? How far can suspicion go before it becomes paranoia? At the end of it all, what is most important to you, glory or family? Those are the themes I got from it.

I loved this book because of it's complexity in such a simple narrative. If you are a veteran of Kenyan literature and you haven't read this, shame on you. If you have been looking for recommendations... Try this one. You won't regret it. Now, "Feed the spirits."

[Corvinus Maximilus · Rating 2 out of 5]

As before....I am not having luck with Mr. Mwangi.