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Mbugua takes the Wahome Mutahi Prize, again!

Nation journalist Ng’ang’a Mbugua, is this year’s Wahome Mutahi’s Literary Prize winner with his book Different Colours. This makes it two times in a row that he has won the prize.

Ng’ang’a Mbugua (Left), is all smiles as he receives his winner’s certificate from Prof Egara Kabaji, who was the chief guest at the ceremony

In 2010, he won the same prize with his other book Terrorists of the Aberdare. Different Colours is published by Big Books. Ng’ang’a’s book beat a formidable competition from Dr Yusuf Dawood’s book Eye of the Storm (East African Educational Publishers) and David Mulwa’s book, We Come in Peace (Oxford University Press). Eye of the Storm won last year’s edition the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature.

In the Kiswahili category Jeff Mandila’s book, Sikitiko la Sambaya (JKF) was the winner, beating other nominees John Habwe’s Pamba also published by JKF and Mwenda Mbatia’s Msururu wa Usaliti (EAEP). The two winners took home cash prizes of Sh50,000. John Habwe won the Kiswahili prize in 2010 with his book Cheche za Moto.

The Wahome Mutahi Literary Prize is held every two years in honour of the late humourist and novelist Wahome Mutahi of the Whispers column fame. It is organised by the Kenya Publishers Association and held at the end of the annual Nairobi International Book Fair, which was in its 15th edition.

The judging panel was led by Prof Henry Indangasi of University of Nairobi, Prof Wangari Mwai of Kenyatta University and Dr Tom Odhiambo of University of Nairobi.

Ng’ang’a Mbugua, who is the chief sub editor of Business Daily said that he was happy to have won the prize two times in a row saying that it was testament of the hard work he put into his writing.

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Finally, someone won Sh1 million; from writing!

Anthony Mugo is probably the richest author in Kenya today. On Friday evening he won Sh1 million in the inaugural Burt Award for African Writing. The Burt Award, administered by the National Book Development Council of Kenya (NBDCK), is the richest literary award in Kenya’s history. His manuscript titled Never say Never has been published by Longhorn Publishers and is out on sale.

The Burt Award is a partnership effort between NBDCK and the Canadian Organisation for Development through Education (CODE), with the support of a Canadian patron Mr. Bill Burt, after whom the prize is named. The award is aimed at encouraging authorship as well as a reading culture among Kenyan children.

Anthony Mugo (center) receives a dummy check for Sh1 Million from Prof Chris Wanjala, that chairman of NBDCK (Right) and Mrs Ruth Odondi, the CEO of NBDCK. At left is Geoff Burt, son of Bill Burt, who graced the occasion.

37-year-old  Mugo, who until July was a credit officer with a micro finance company says writing is not new to him. “I have been writing for the last twenty years only that I have never been published,” he explains. In 2009, he participated in another NBDCK organised writing competition, where he won with his manuscript Too Innocent to Die. In 2010 he again participated and emerged victorious with another manuscript, Not a Drop. Mugo, who is married with two children graduated from Moi University with a BA in Economics.

Coming in at second position was Edward Mwangi, who took home Sh500,000. His manuscript, The Delegate, was published by Moran Publishers and is also on sale. The 32-year-old, who has just completed his MBA from Nairobi University, works as a general manager for an engineering company in Nairobi. Mwangi, who is also married with two children says his perseverance has finally paid off. “Every morning before I start working, I write for an hour and another hour after work,” he explains.

In third position was Ngumi Kibera, with his manuscript titled The Devil’s Hill, which is published by Longhorn. Mr Ngumi, who is an established author, won Sh250,000. He is not new to winning; His other book, The Grapevine Stories, a Collection of short stories, won the 1997 edition of the Jomo Kenyatta prize for Literature.

Ngumi is full of praises for the Burt Award saying that it is a timely effort that will take Kenyan writing to the next level. “There is a lot of writing talent in Kenya only that our publishers are not aggressive enough to tap them,” he said. “The fact that there were 400 submissions for this prize is testimony of raw writing talent out there waiting to be discovered.”

Also present during the awards ceremony, held at the Silver Spring Hotel,

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Miguna’s book: Nothing new so let the readers decide

This is what I wrote on June 6, 2012. I trust is makes sense…

When Raila Odinga advisor turned-bitter foe, Miguna Miguna announced that he would write a book, which among other things, would reveal the Prime Minister’s ‘dark secrets’, it generated a lot of debate among Kenyans.

Expectedly, and like anything mildly controversial about the prime minister, the reaction to the announcement was split down the middle. On the one side, there are the PM’s supporters who strongly feel that the book should not be published at all, as it would complicate his chances, seeing as we are headed to a crucial election, where he is contesting the presidency.

Then there is the other group made up mostly of the PM’s detractors – read enemies, as this is Kenyan politics – who are rubbing their hands almost in malicious glee, hoping that contents of the book will be ‘damaging’ enough to derail his quest for presidency.

Miguna Miguna

From the reaction alone, it is quite clear that Peeling Back the Mask – shouldn’t it be Peeling the Mask? – is one highly anticipated book, by Kenyans here and in the diaspora. Even foreigners will be itching to catch a glimpse of the book; such is the nature of international profile the prime minister has cultivated for himself.

I am sure even the people who are opposed to the idea of the book will be among the first people wanting to lay their hands on the book, if only to seek to counter the ‘bad things’ that have been written about their hero.

It is therefore quite clear, from the foregoing, that aside from the politics and personal differences between the PM and Miguna Miguna, what makes the book such an ‘attractive’ prospect is the seemingly larger-than-life status of Raila Odinga.

Though he might be loath to admit it, Miguna knows that even with Kenya’s notoriously poor ‘reading culture’, his book might get a ‘good’ reception just because it is on Raila Odinga. And he might get good returns out of it all.

Whether by design or by default, the prime minister is the most talked about politician in the country today -never mind that most of it might not be positive.

To be sure, the PM, is President Mwai Kibaki’s biggest nightmare; you only need to look back at troubled 2007 presidential election, and the enforced coalition to know this.

Retired president Moi does not exactly have warm thoughts about the PM, seeing as he joined his party Kanu, only to ‘wreck’ it from within. Yes, it is largely Odinga’s efforts that put paid Moi’s desires to have Uhuru Kenyatta succeed him as president in 2002.

And were it not for stakes involved in the forthcoming presidential elections the PM would be enjoying himself seeing all the ‘serious’ presidential candidates ganging up to deny him the much coveted seat. All this points to his potency and influence.

With such a background, now you see why the book is likely to be a ‘hit’.

Politics, controversies and intrigues aside, Miguna’s book begs to be looked at from a purely artistic point of view. Since its selling point is Raila Odinga we can safely say that it falls under the genre of an unauthorised biography. And whenever you talk about unauthorised biographies, Jerome Corsi’s The Obama Nation easily comes to mind.

Among other things, The Obama Nation was intended at derailing Barack Obama’s first attempt at the US presidency, like he did with his earlier book Unfit for Command, which is said to have contributed to the failure of John Kerry’s attempt to challenge George Bush in his last term as US president.

Yes, The Obama Nation, is the book Corsi attempted to sensationally launch in Nairobi, when the Kenya government unceremoniously sent him packing.

So to answer you, what Miguna is attempting is perfectly in order.

Still, on Obama, today, the American president is the subject of a lot of unauthorised biographies in the US, and they enjoy prominence of space alongside Obama’s autobiographical works, Dreams of My Father and The Audacity of Hope.

Closer Home, and in South Africa, David James Smith, in 2010, released a controversial book titled, Young Mandela: The Revolutionary Years, which was basically an unauthorised biography of South Africa’s first post-apartheid president. The book, among other things, detailed alleged sexual immorality and infidelity by Mandela. It also alleges that the South African icon had a child with his one-time secretary, and who is reported to have contributed to the breakdown of Mandela’s first marriage.

Tiger Woods, who underwent a rough patch after allegations of infidelity cost him his marriage, also became a ripe target of unauthorised biographies. His former coach Hank Haney, early this year released a ‘brutally candid’ account of Wood’s indiscretions in a book  titled The Big Miss. In his defense an unapologetic Haney said: “Tiger Woods didn’t have an exclusive on memories, so I wanted to share them. It’s an insight into Tiger that most people wouldn’t be able to enjoy.

“When you’re around greatness, like I was for six years, you’re asked about it and you want to talk about it. That’s what I have done.” No doubt, those are sentiments Miguna shares in private.

We also have Kenyan examples of unauthorised biographies on famous personalities. Journalist Ng’ang’a Mbugua wrote Mwai Kibaki: Economist for Kenya for Longhorn’s Junior Biographies. He followed it later with Catherine Ndereba: The Marathon Queen.

Early last year former Bahari MP, and who was Vice-president Kalonzo Musyoka’s confidant caused a ripple when he published Politics of Betrayal a book that painted the vice president as a selfish, scheming politician, who will not hesitate to undermine a friend when he stands to gain something.

And with the impending launch of Miguna’s book, the former advisor to the PM takes the cake in terms of controversy, not forgetting its sheer nuisance value.

Maybe its time Mbugua thought of upgrading his book on Kibaki…

UPDATE:

Interestingly, When John Githongo’s book, Its Our Time to Eat, written by Michela Wrong, came out, the man instantly became a hero to some and a traitor to others. Now that Miguna Miguna’s book Peeling back the Mask is soon to be launched, the people who considered Githongo a traitor now think Miguna is a hero. On the other hand the people who said Githongo was a hero now feel Miguna is a traitor. Still, each of these groups will point an accusing finger at the other calling them tribalists and anti-reformers…

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Kenyan elected to continental publishing body

A Kenyan, Mr. Lawrence Njagi is the new treasurer of African Publishers Network (APNET), the continental body that brings together African publishers from both English and French speaking countries. Mr. Njagi, who apart from being the chairman of the Kenya Publishers Association, is also the managing director of Mountain Top Publishers, was elected for a two year period when APNET’s general council met in Cape Town on the sidelines of the Cape Town Book Fair. Mr. Samuel Kolowale, who heads the Nigeria Publishers Network, was elected as chairman.

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The new team also includes Mohamed Radi, from Egypt as vice chair. Members of the council are Mrs Christine Ekue from Togo, Mrs Gaulphine Nyirenda from Malawi, Mr Asare Yemoah Konadu from Ghana and Mr David Kibuuka from Uganda. The new team will be in office for a period of two years. The new team takes over from the previous office held by Brian Wafarowa, from South Africa, who was chairman and Ray Munamwimbu, from Zambia, who was treasurer.

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Mbugua’s new book a fitting tribute to Wangari Maathai

It would appear that matters to do with environmental conservation occupy a special place in Ng’ang’a Mbugua’s world. Yet, it is these conservation matters that fire his creativity. His last two books have all focused on environmental conservation as their central theme.
And while these issues might appear boring and the least likely subject of a novel, Mbugua has nevertheless breathed life into these otherwise mundane issues and crafted interesting stories around them.
Call him an NGO novelist, an environmental crusader/activist, and any other such names but the fact of the matter is that Mbugua’s books are immensely readable. This is a refreshing departure in an environment where captivating Kenyan writers are few and far between.
Mbugua’s foray into ‘environmental writing’ started with his book Susana the Brave, a primary school reader that talked about a teacher, who after being posted to a school in an arid area, went ahead and transformed the place due to her dedicated campaign to plant trees.
His second book, Terrorists of the Aberdare, addressed the delicate issue of human wildlife conflict and by extent, forest conservation.
And for his troubles Terrorists won the third edition of the Wahome Mutahi Literary Prize. The book was also short listed for the 2011 edition of Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature.


His latest book, Different Colours, and which I think is his most ambitious so far, has taken the game a notch higher. Not only has he written on his pet subject, he has fused it with the sublime world of Art.
Different Colours revolves around an imaginary waterfall in an equally imaginary Banana County, which is threatened by an unscrupulous merchant who starts to mine building stones from around the waterfall. The hero of the book is Miguel, a dreadlocked artist – don’t they all sport dreadlocks? – who, after hearing of the beauty of the waterfall decides that he must immortalise it on canvas.
It is while on one of his surveying missions that he accidentally bumps into a group of men hard at work in a secret quarry. The story unfolds after the owner of the secret quarry is alerted of Miguel’s nosiness.
Not that Dik Teita (note the play on the word dictator) hadn’t had his fears as to the ‘real’ intentions of the newly arrived ‘rastaman’. The moment he got wind of Miguel’s mission of painting the waterfall – word travels fast in Banana – he feared it was a matter of time before his secret quarry was discovered.
To prevent this, Dik Teita comes up with what he thinks is a convenient smokescreen; make Miguel paint the local cattle dip – who, in their right minds assigns such jobs?
Seeing as the cattle dip ruse didn’t work, Dik Teita resorts to intimidation and threats of violence. And who better does this dirty work than Vu Tabangi (bhang smoker) the village thug. Sadly for Dik Teita, the threats have the opposite effect on Miguel: his resolve to save the waterfall from destruction hardens. Together with Angela, a widow who also happens to be his landlady, they mobilise the local community on the importance of conserving the waterfall, which is their lifeline. They also enlist the services of Derek, Miguel’s friend, who is also a tech geek. Derek also has contacts in media.
Meanwhile, the noose tightens on Dik Teita and his goons. It also emerges that Dik Teita was behind the death of Angela’s husband.
While the waterfall conservation saga is engrossing I found the parts dealing with Miguel’s art most appealing. It is either that the author is an accomplished art connoisseur or that he had done thorough research on all that entails art, paintings and other forms of visual art.
Whatever the case, the informed discourse on art really uplifts
Mbugua’s book.
In Different Colours, art meets nature, and it is in the appreciation of the beauty of nature that Miguel’s talent and eye for detail enriches the conservation narrative.
Due to their unconventional behaviour society tends to misunderstand artists. Most of the times artists are seen as misfits. And Miguel was no exception; in one classic moment, Miguel is told that people come to the waterfall to commit suicide. “It is a good place to die,” he says more to himself, probably after being overawed by the beauty of the falls.
Throughout the book, the author teases romantics with the probable love affair blossoming between Miguel and his widowed landlady. Even at the end of the novel, he only hints at what might come between the two.
This book, in my view, is a fitting tribute to the late Nobel Laureate, Prof Wangari Maathai. Your work, Mama Miti, was not in vain.

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Surgeon wins Kenya’s top literary prize

Sunday Nation columnist Dr. Yusuf Dawood is the winner of this year’s Jomo Kenyata Prize for Literature award. His book, Eye of the Storm, beat two other nominees; Terrorists of the Aberdare by Ng’ang’a Mbugua, and Lone Dancer (EAEP) by Joe Kiarie to scoop the top prize in the English category. In the Kiswahili category the winner is Timothy Arege with his book Kijiba cha Moyo (Longhorn). In the English Youth Category Eva Kasaya’s book Tales of Kasaya (Kwani Trust) won the top prize, while Mlemavu si Mimi (OUP) by Ipalei Godfrey. In the children’s Englisifh category the winner was journalist Peter Kimani with his book Upside Down (OUP). The kiswahili category was taken by Q FM presenter Nuhu Bakari with his book Wema wa Mwana (Longhorn). Winners in the adult categories took home sh150,000 while those in the youth and children’s categories got themselves sh75,000 each. The Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature is awarded every two years and is sponsored by the Text Book Center.

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You can learn to dream again in spite of your failure

Most of us must have, at one point or the other, gone through a particularly traumatic experience; an
experience so painful that it leaves you thoroughly disillusioned and demoralised.
In most cases some of these experiences crush one’s spirit to the extent that if the person is not strong enough, they might give up on life altogether.
Take the case of the businessman who watches his life investments wiped out in a single tragic event.
Chances are that if this person did not have a fall back plan it is quite probable that he would find it really difficult getting back to where he was.
Or the person who, for one reason or the other, finds themselves unable to repay a loan they had taken, and the lending institution attaches the little property they had, in order to recover the loan.
And what about the politician who loses his seat in parliament and can ’t win back the seat in the
subsequent by -election? Examples of bad things happening to people abound. Well, the reality of life is such that these things happen, not only to the poor or the down trodden, but to the rich and successful. The question therefore is, how does one recover from such a setback and move on with life? In his new book; You can Dream Again, Pepe Minambo argues that success in life isn’ t just a matter of being the best; “Success is about handling the worst. It is being able to deal constructively with life ’s disappointments.”
Basically, what the book says is that no matter how difficult a position one finds themselves in, it is of no use dwelling on the past, as the painful past will only leave you feeling bitter and resentful. Yet the wheels of life keep turning, whether you are down or not.
Using research and personal experience, the author outlines steps through which a person, can follow with a view to overcoming a tragic
event, and leading a normal, even successful life.
Pepe, who is also a motivational speaker, says that the state of a person ’s mind has a lot to do with whether the person overcomes a tough situation or they remain destitute. He talks of people who ‘fall in love’ with their misfortunes and thus keep talking about them in the hope that empathise with them.
Pepe says that expressions of pity from people, though deceivingly comforting, do not help much. “The solution to your problem lies in
you,” he writes. “And the faster you realise this and start doing something about it the better. Remember when your dream goes up in smoke, do not sit back and start counting your losses; rather, stand up and start counting your blessings.”
The author says that one of the fastest ways overcoming a painful setback is to first of all accept the situation. Many people, he says, react to painful scenarios by going into denial. Take the example of the person who gets blinded after drinking an illicit brew.
If such a person goes into denial mode, he or she is setting themselves up for further heartbreak. Thus the faster such a person accepts their condition and starts learning how cope with the blindness, the better it will be for him to overcome that painful episode and move on with life.
Most of all Pepe tells people undergoing a painful patch that while it might be the first time it is happening to them, the reality is such
that it has happened to other people before. Thus it is not unique to them.
Pepe gives his own experience about how at some point in life he pumped his life’s saving into a diamond and gold business, in his home country of Congo. “At the time of getting into the business, I harboured dreams of turning into an overnight millionaire,” he
narrates. “Since I did not have any experience in that kind of
business it was clear from the
beginning was headed for failure.”
Instead of recognising failure when it first manifested itself, Pepe went into denial mode, and kept pumping money into the business in the
vain hope that the business would somehow turn around. “The more money I pumped into the business, the more of it went down the drain.”
Luckily for him he had the state of mind to accept the stark reality of failure. “I accepted the unacceptable and decided to mend the
broken pieces of my dream and start all over again. ”
Today, Pepe is a much sought after motivational speaker. With four motivational books to his name, Pepe gets invitations to give talks to
corporate organisations and schools around the country and abroad .
His other books are Be Inspired Before you Expire, Inspired for Greatness and a student’s handbook The Greatness Syndrome.
The beauty about Pepe’s book is that what he writes is grounded in reality and therefore easy to follow and
implement.

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literary prize judges announced

In case you have forgotten Kenya still has a literary prize called the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature. I might also hasten to add that the Prize is administered by the Kenya Publishers Association (KPA) every two years.
Come October, at the end of the Nairobi International Book Fair a creative Kenyan will go home with a cool Sh150,000, this being the prize money for the award. I am hearing whispers to the effect that the prize money could be increased.
That being the case KPA has announced a three -judge
panel for this year ’s, yes they do have judges.
The panel is headed by Prof Henry Indangasi, who teaches in the Literature
Department of University Nairobi . The other members are Dr Tom Odhiambo also of University of Nairobi and Prof Wangari Mwai , the Director of Kenyatta University Campus in Nyeri . Mr James Odhiambo , the executive officer of KPA says this year’s award has attracted 19
Kiswahili titles and 33 English titles. “The judges panel should be able to announce the shortlisted titles by September , ” he explains .
“Winners will announced on October 1 during the 14th edition of the Nairobi International Book Fair.” And we shall tell you who the nominated authors are, come September. Er, we’re that good.

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Clashes author parts ways with publisher

Author Kinyanjui Kombani has parted ways with his publishers Acacia Stantex in regards to his book The Last Villains of Molo.
The move effectively ends a long drawn struggle between author and publisher that has lasted more than five years. The novel has been hailed as a powerful enactment of the 1992 ethnic violence and as a
premonition of the 2008 post election violence. We understand that the
split is the culmination of many months of conflict over unpaid royalties . The author is also said not to be happy
about the publisher’ s marketing and publicity plans .
When contacted, Kinyanjui was non-committal on the reasons for the split, only saying ; “ I have enough respect for Jimmi Makotsi – he made the book what it is and I do not want to malign
his name. But it is time to move on .” He admitted that he is in discussion with
other publishers to reissue the book, although he did not give names. The Last Villains of Molo has enjoyed some level of publicity in the print and electronic media and on social forums . It is currently a study text in Moi, Kenyatta, Daystar and Egerton
Universities and is a subject of several Masters and one PhD theses. Plans are
underway to produce a stage version of the book in an upcoming festival , and a local film producer has expressed interest in shooting the film
based on the novel . The writer has also written two other children’s books and scripted a film. He has finalized work on another novel . Kinyanjui says that, as part of the termination agreement , he purchased
all stock copies of the book from the publisher, and they are currently on sale via his website
www .kinyanjuikombani.com

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Burt Award: How to enter

Following the launch of the Burt Award for African Literature, most would-be participants were asking what the rules and regulations were. Well, here they are.

First of all the length of the manuscript should be between 120 – 150 pages, and should be divided in chapter form. The manuscript to be submitted should be double spaced. You should also use the Times New Roman, font size 12.
Click here to download a PDF of the rules and regulations
Deadline for Submission
All manuscripts, which must be in soft copy, should be submitted to: info@nationalbookcouncilkenya.org by Friday 30th
September 2011 at 12.00 noon.
The manuscripts will be assessed by a panel of qualified jurors based on the criteria set herein.
The winners together with the date and venue for the award ceremony will be made known through the media.