Product Description

...that rarity, an almost wordless love story that avoids pseudo-nobility while remaining proudly and distinctively African.
- The Guardian

Christian missionaries attempt to outlaw the female circumcision ritual and in the process create a terrible rift between the two Kikuyu communities on either side of the river. The people are torn between those who believe in Western/Christian education and the opportunities it will offer, and those who feel that only unquestioned loyalty to past traditions will save them. The growing conflict brings tragedy to a pair of young lovers who attempted to bridge the deepening chasm.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9472 in Books
• Published on: 1990-01-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Review
“...that rarity, an almost wordless love story that avoids pseudo-nobility while remaining proudly and distinctively African.”–The Guardian

About the Author
Ngugi is world famous for his novels from Weep Not, Child to Matigari and the impact of his plays, especially in Gikuyu, which led to his detention in Kenya. He is now Professor of Comparative Literature and Performance Studies in New York University. This book reflects many of the concerns found in Decolonising the Mind and Moving the Centre.

Customer Reviews

The Valley of the Shadow of Death: Can one reconcile the old and the new?
Ngugu wa Thiong'o's two ridges are rivals to the political and spiritual salvation of the Kikuyu. Waiyaki stands between the two worlds. Indeed, he sees that both the traditionalist's view and the tribe and the new Christian view each hold a modicum of merit. Waiyaki attempts to bridge these worlds to strengthen the tribe and connect with the good of the modern world.
The man caught between two worlds is a common theme throughout literature and may be seen as trite. Yet, as usual trite themes are only bad when done by bad writers. Ngugu, however, is a fantastic writer. He is to the Kikuyu what Achebe is to the Ibo. This book is thoroughly enthralling; not only do I give this book 5 stars I would put it in must read.

The River Between
The River Between is about the division between two villages in Africa, divisions begun by the differences between the tribal ways and Christian ways brought by the missionaries. The death of Muthoni, the eldest daughter of Joshua, the most stringent follower of the missionary, after undergoing female circumcision causes the missionary to "outlaw" female circumcision and forbid the children of the "circumcised" to attend the school. An expelled student of the school in his final year sets up schools for those that believe the tribal traditions, but his youth awakens an old enemy of his father to oppose him and set him up for failure by utilizing the young man's love for Nyambura, Joshua's other daughter. Not to give anything away, I was not happy with the end of the book, hence the 3 rating; however, those who think they are enlightened and would like to outlaw female circumcision should read this book as if does raise an interesting question: "If the white man's religion made you abandon a custom and then did not give you something else of equal value, you became lost. An attempt at resolution of the conflict would only kill you, as it did Muthoni." What do the "liberals" who want to outlaw female circumcision in the name of "women's rights" suggest as a custom to replace this custom?

Just one question...
I read this book while living in Tanzania as a volunteer from 2000-2002. I found it very helpful in understanding East African post-colonial attitudes. For that, it was an invaluable book to read, and it helped me put my own self and work into context. I would recommend this book to anyone doing Peace Corps in Kenya or Tanzania.

As a work of fiction, it is fascinating, and I was easily absorbed into the storyline, and the love story involved.

However, I felt that the women in the story were too simplistically depicted. It left me wondering if that is truly how women in Kenya during that era felt about female circumcision, or if Ngugi himself had written from the female perspective without really understanding it.

In some ways, he makes FGM seem like it is comparable to male circumcision, which it's not. It does far more damage to a woman than what men typically experience from male circumcision.

So my suggestion, then, is for readers to keep in mind that the writer is a male from a male-dominated society as they read the story.