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Beyond tribal Lines
Beyond Tribal Lines: Reimagining Communities and Boundaries in Africa is about the perceptions, understandings, and experiences of difference between selves and communities in Africa and beyond. It focuses on the nature of difference in its many manifestations – social and communal, local and national – and the fundamental bases and typical consequences of such difference. Further, it explains the importance of difference between individuals, communities and societies; affirming that difference is natural to human social and individual existence.
Critically, it takes up the challenge of how – given the many differences between us – a society may achieve peaceful co-existence and harmony among its members. The book makes the case that being different doesn’t necessitate being enemies, antagonists or subjects of contestation.
To address and live with said difference, the authors present thoughtful ideas on realizing social harmony through individual and community reflection and understanding.
What Others Say
“Lawyers engaging transformative constitutions in Africa will find the book useful in interrogating these constitutions’ implementation which calls for a multi-disciplinary approach to their interpretation and implementation. The various insights of this book necessarily engage the burning issue of the people’s sovereign power. Political scientists interrogating the politics of division and the quest for alternative forms of political leadership in Africa will find the book’s theoretical and practical reflections useful.”
- Dr. Willy Mutunga, EGH, former Chief Justice, Kenyan lawyer, intellectual, reform activist, and former Commonwealth Special Envoy to the Maldives.
Echemini y’Ekegusii: Ekegusii C...
Abagusii lived spiritual lives with Engoro as their God who was associated with the sun, the tool He used to traverse the world. Engoro was responsible for opening and closing days (amatuko/amagooro). At sunrise and sunset, Omogusii prayed for a good day and night.
Other worship situations arose out of need, e.g. to bless, cleanse, and sacrifice (among others) in which Omogusii communed with Engoro, described variously as Matonga/Omotongi (the creator), Monyara/Omobui (the powerful one), Omonguru (Almighty), Mokona/Omonyabikone (miracle performer).
Among the spirits, Chisokoro represented departed relatives and were a medium for communication between man and Engoro responsible for blessings. Ebirecha represented evil spirits and inflicted punishment. A person displaying negative signs meant that either the Chisokoro were not happy with the person or he had attracted the wrath of ebirecha. For the former, one needed to appease (sacrifice) the Chisokoro. The latter one needed cleansing. Sacrifices and cleansing followed specific routines and were carried out at specified sacred sites.
MALAIKA
When a university professor decides to open a private school where young children can be taught in their mother tongue, she finds herself at the centre of controversy and intrigue. This is a story about the love and dedication of three women: a young, independent businesswoman. an older teacher and her American friend. As political events swirl around these women, and as Kenya moves towards democracy and national cohesion, the reader is caught up in the struggle of the human spirit to realize the goal of justice for all people.
Arthur Dobrin is Professor Emeritus of University Studies at Hofstra University. He is also Leader Emeritus of the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island, New York, United States of America.
He and his wife, Lyn, were Peace Corps Volunteers in Kisii, Kenya from 1965-67, lived there again in 1975 and returned many times since. Dr. Dobrin is the author of more than 25 books, including three others set in Kenya: Salted with Fire, Kwamboka’s Inquiry, and This Red Land.
Fortune of the Unfortunate
In Fortune of the Unfortunate, the author provides extensive and well-woven storytelling of day-to-day lives centred around themes of love and kindness, love choices; love and culture; love, loss and depression; love and sacrifice; and more such as mistrust and betrayal.
For instance, in The Fortune of the Unfortunate, Tracy, a 15-year-old royal girl is moved by the sufferings of unfortunate street children. It inspires her to take extraordinary steps to bring fortune to the unfortunate street families.
Christine, in Beneath the Smile is down to tears after learning about her mother’s death. She sets off on the journey to attend the funeral with her husband and daughter only to learn that her mother is not dead but in the ICU. She ends up in the same hospital when she passes out. In her sick bed, she had flashbacks to her days on campus and how she strayed.
In Eternal Promise, Chris loses his wife and daughter in a car crash, a traumatic experience that sends him into depression. Chris fights to hide the depression from his employees and his mother. More and more, he devotes his time to the company he started with his wife, showing little interest in loving again even as his secretary persistently tries to ‘bring him to the path of steady life’.
In Friends in the Circle, college friends engage in a storytelling session that leads to confessions of love and the spilling of their lives’ secrets. Michael reminisces about his first love, narrating his tale with fondness and sorrow. On each count of account, Michael and Lien’s interest in each other intensified.
… and many more!
Readers will find these stories, all drawn from the realities of contemporary life, compelling.
Khole and Other Untold Stories from A...
Khole and Other Untold Stories from Africa, an anthology of short stories, is based on Chinua Achebe’s postulation about the need for African writers to refrain from Afropolitan rejection of African subjects. This would enable audiences to taste “the balance of stories of the world’s peoples” because, for centuries, readers had been served with a single Western story. The contributors in this collection return to the African past and explore positive attributes of African culture.
Nyongesa’s Khole explores the potential of African spiritual healing in contrast to modern medicine. Muruli Muhandi, in When Kumtoto Dances, is on the pre-eminence of African spirituality as personified in altars that are of great influence in African lives. Robert Rotich’s My Grandfather’s Old Coin is on Kipsisgis marriage rites, while Felix Okuku explores the impact of the spiritual among the Mijikenda of Kenya. The stories, as well as the others in this collection, affirm Edward Blyden’s postulation that African peoples are destined to make an outstanding spiritual contribution to the world.
What Others Say
Khole and Other Stories from Africa is an invaluable textual artifact that preserves the rich oral traditions of African societies. It is a platform for historically marginalized voices and celebrates the resilience of African epistemologies in the face of relentless cultural imperialism. The anthology challenges readers to engage with the complexities of African spiritual and cultural systems, offering insights that transcend mere folkloric appreciation and delve into the deeper philosophical underpinnings of African life. - Prof. John Mugubi, Kenyatta University.
The Blissabyss
The Blissabyss depicts the contradictions inherent in human life and its vulnerability to negative trajectories. Save for Nancy, Eugene, Fresha, and Brenda are idealistic in their youth. As they mature, they come to terms with a world with little room for ideals. Driven by ambition to succeed, Eugene reveals his plans to everyone only to encounter many obstacles on his journey to success. When his brother, Soita attempts to murder him, Eugene comes to terms with his delusions about being strong. Deprived of love and family, his tethers to idealism snap, and he drinks and spends in Nancy’s room contradicting his moral principles. After a fantastic love affair with Frank, Fresha loses her chastity. Eugene would have continued in his chosen destructive path without Professor Mukabi’s intervention. The author’s message: a supportive social environment is the sole prescription to mitigate the weaknesses ingrained in human nature.
What Others Say
“The characters in The Blissabyss represent a society at a crossroads with individuals seeking to find their feet and place in the face of shifting identities and generational transformations. Their interactions and experiences at the university cast aspersions on their long-held beliefs and open them to new vistas of a future that are substantially different from what they have been made to believe. These young characters act as a link betweewn the age-old beliefs and the future possibilities which need a sincere and rational engagement devoid of misconceptions and half-truths. This they do with varying degrees of success.” - Dr Maurice S Mwichuli, Lecturer, Literary Studies, Kenyatta University
“In The Blissabyss, Andrew Nyongesa uses elegant, contemplative language with a mix of poetic imagery and emotional depth. The text is rich and expressive creating vivid images of the settings. The description helps the readers to visualize the characters’ inner worlds and their interactions.” - Juliet Achieng’, Editor, Nsemia Inc.
Songs of the Master River Wabler
Emeino y'Egetinginye Enchome is a captivating book of Ekegusii poetry that celebrates the rich tapestry of the AbaGusii people. The poems within this collection explore the depths of love, the enchanting beauty of the EkeGusii language and culture, and the splendor of the natural world.
From the majestic rivers and rolling hills to the vibrant flora and fauna, the anthology paints a vivid portrait of the Gusii homeland. Readers are invited to savor the essence of Ekegusii heritage through the poet's exploration of traditional culinary arts, cherished dishes, and cultural landmarks. The collection is a testament to the enduring spirit of the Gusii people, expressed through the lyrical power of their native tongue.
The poems in this book were conceived in Ekegusii in a bid to capture the nuances of Gusii's spoken art, culture, language, and way of life, which is surely facing extinction. It persuades the reader to go back not only in time but also to the roots of the essence of Ekegusii. There is an attempt to translate the poems to English for a wider reach.
Anciently of the clan of Masisi of the Bagesaka from Bobasi, Nyansera Otieno is a scribe, painter, curator, cultural activist, and native language crusader. He has taught at the Bugema University (Uganda) and Kisii University (Kenya) at the School of Arts and Social Sciences, Department of Languages Linguistics and Literature. He holds a doctorate in linguistics from Kisii University. He is a crusader for Gusii Language and Culture revitalization. He writes poetry and short stories from his rich EkeGusii oral literature background. He patronizes the Bobasi Branch of the AbaGusii Cultural and Development Council and Mwanyagetinge Heritage Council, Bobasi Chapter.
The Year in Gusii: The Naming of Mont...
Abagusii, buna banto bande bonsi bare ense eye, imbabwate enchera yokoroberia chingaki ao ao. Rituko, buna ande onsi ase erioba rikoraba, igo riaye gochake ekemambia ka bokogia naende riaera mogoroba ka bwairire. Kobara amatuko igo bare gochaka na ‘rero’ babara gochia magega gose motwe.
Emetienyi eyare kobwatia okoraba kw’omotienyi (omweri), ekagera omwaka okaba emetienyi ikomi na ebere. Korende amarieta y’emetienyi ao ao igo are kobwatia gose n’engaki y’embura, omobaso gose omorakera na komenta gose n’engaki gokorema, gosimeka gose kogesa.
Ayio onsi n’oyokworokia buna Abagusii bare komanya buna ingaki ki ere egere baroberie keria bagwenerete gokora.
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Abagusii, like all other communities across the world, had a way of relating with time. While the day was dictated by sunrise and sunset, days were separated relatively, with ‘today’ being the anchor relative to other days. Months, on the other hand, followed the moon’s cycle and hence the twelve months of the year. Months were named relative to the weather of the time and the activities it dictated. For this reason, the names of months were largely descriptive.
This provides an overview of the concept of time in Gusii and the rationale for naming the months in the manner they were.
Research Methodology: A Blue Print
Research Methodology is a difficult area for many earlycareer researchers, especially graduate students. This book focuses on major research issues, right from problem
conceptualization, development of objectives, research design, and results interpretation and presentation.
The work discusses effective writing styles that enable exceptionally clear and straight forward communication. It further addresses a variety of ways of proposal writing and
developing it into a thesis.
This book gives examples that provide opportunities for students and other researchers to engage in acceptable conventions of APA style of writing. Further, it demystifies research methodology with a view to improving the quality and standards of academic writing.
The Eye of Mayenga by Jaspher Rori
The Eye of Mayenga is a heart-throbbing novel centred in a remote, rural African village of Mayenga. The village is a lethargic place that appears to have been left behind with respect to world trends and realities. Its residents seem trapped in times gone, dwelling on beliefs like witchcraft and other archaic practices. There seems to be neither vision nor mission, and stuck in antiquated beliefs. Its residents' pastime is drinking cheap illicit liquor, and engaging in pessimistic village gossip, which presents its own challenges. Their own son, Vincent Senta, a practising lawyer in Nairobi, 'sees with his heart' the predicament of the village, and resolves to apply his knowledge, skills and connections to bring change to the village. He successfully organises a women's group and initiates an eye-catching water project, which some people appreciate and see him as the "Eye of Mayenga." However, petty gossip and a troubled family life take their toll on him. To escape the harsh reality, he finds solace in his sentimental secretary. The relationship is ill-fated with him testing HIV-positive of which he eventually dies. Despite the medical exposition on the cause of death, blame is squarely placed on his hard-to-understand neighbours who, due to their religious beliefs, lead lives of solitude. Most residents of Mayenga believe he has been bewitched by the neighbours. In a "revenge mission", the neighbours are burnt alive in broad daylight right in the presence of the local chief. Though rumours were rife that these neighbours carried the cross of Senta's death, nobody had answers to the chief's torrential questions: Who? When? Why? What? How? And what and in the future? And future? The Eye of Mayenga captures a community at a cross-road and illustrates the clash of cultures and the struggle between the past and modernity.
"The Eye of Mayenga is a wonderful piece of art that touches on many aspects of our lives. It tackles contemporary issues of the developing world undergoing social change.These are issues that offer challenges to development." - Elijah Ogoti, English Teacher, Kenya.
"Apart from being an excellent story to read, it is a commendable book for students in community development." - Joseph A. Awino, Lecturer, University of Nairobi, Kenya.
"Jaspher Rori's work is a pretty juicy, practical, and interesting story that is set in a traditional African society, and is interwoven with unique practical challenges, exciting themes and characters that leave the reader yearning for more." - Sakaja Yona, Lecturer, University of Nairobi.