Novella tackles problem of alcohol abuse among the youth

Title: The Man in Green Dungarees

Author: Ng'ang'a Mbugua

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Available: Bookshops countrywide

By Kennedy Mwangi

In his characteristic simple and free-flowing style, Ng’anga’ Mbugua mesmerizes readers in what is one of his most successful books. 

The novella, written in an ordinary yet beautiful first person narrative, stamps the author’s mark on literary finesse. Told by a hawker while selling his wares in the streets, the author takes the reader through the life of an ordinary man with mixed fortunes. 

The Man in Green Dungarees describes just how a man’s determination can pull a person out of poverty and put him at the table of greatness. 

"There was a time we used to hawk with him here on this very street. Now I see him being interviewed on television and when I say that I know him, nobody believes me," the narrator states.

As in some of his previous works, in Dungarees, Mbugua employs humour and this gives the novel a light touch, making it more appealing to diverse audiences.   

"…we can sit around and tell stories now that we have no bosses to harass us and make our lives miserable. At times I pity those office types," one character in the book says.

John Benjamin is the central character in the novella. He is disillusioned in life when he misses university entrance by a point. This one missed point goes further to deny him love from his girlfriend who describes him unflatteringly as a "school dropout". He finds comfort in alcoholism and heavily indulges in a local brew to a point of sleeping in the ditch.  He is brought back to his senses by a little girl who ‘held her nose when John Benjamin walked into (the) house'. 

After this experience, John Benjamin vows to make something useful of his life and turns his good carpentry skills into a source of money by making kennels. His business grows and he starts designing and selling first-class kennels. He goes on to be nominated and wins a young entrepreneurs’ prize.

John Benjamin’s climb to the top of the ladder is not that all smooth. A conman milked him of millions of shillings and his long-trusted business friend, Parmenus Marifoti, almost got him killed after a botched narcotics assignment went sour. After the incident, he had to work extra hard to regain the trust that the public had in him.

The author also puts the education system to test. In what could be an authorial voice, John Benjamin says he was "the victim of a system which equates failing in examination with failing in life". 

He says: "Education is important if individuals are to realise their full potential but young people also need to be encouraged to exploit their talents be it in sports, arts or any other field. I failed to join university, but now I am benefiting from my talent".

This book touches on alcoholism, irresponsible parenthood, corruption, betrayal, tears, joy and love.  

The book defines the common man’s life and illuminates how a man can rise and fall and rise again depending on the choices that one makes in life.

The book’s flow of events and descriptions, coupled with the characters confines the book to the common man’s readership. Mbugua seems to take advantage of his ability to write his thoughts in a simple language that is appealing to a majority of readers. In this book, however, this art narrowly misfires as it can almost be termed as simplistic.

Kennedy Mwangi is a Literature and Political Science Student at the University of Nairobi

Kenmwangi90@gmail.com

Carjacking: Nairobi author lives to tell tales of armed crime

Book: In the Hands of Armed Tormentors
Author: Gathirwa Ndaigiri
Price: Sh580
Available at: Bookpoint and Chania Bookshop, Nairobi
Reviewer: Ng’ang’a Mbugua

Sometimes, reality can be more intriguing than fiction.
That is the impression that one gets from reading Gathirwa Ndaigiri’s latest book, In the Hands of Armed Tormentors.
Besides recounting 25 real life stories of motorists who have survived carjacking — an all too common crime in many towns, especially Nairobi — the book also gives survival tips on how one can avoid falling victim and, in the event one is caught unawares, what one can do to survive the ordeal.
Gathirwa, a lawyer by profession, said in an interview that the book was inspired partly by his own experiences, having been carjacked two times. In one incident, the gangsters were intent on killing him but he pleaded for mercy, claiming that he had bought his car as a write-off from an insurer with the sole intention of selling it to raise money to settle his wife’s hospital bills. It was a fib, but it worked. His life was spared but his car disappeared, never to be found again.
Seeing that he and people he knew had a tale to tell about their ordeals in the hands of carjackers, Gathirwa decided to compile the anecdotes into a book to educate readers on how gangsters operate so that they can be on the look-out whenever they find themselves in similar circumstances.
“I chose to share my story and those of others as one way to heal from these nightmares,” the author says in the introduction to his book. “It is my strong belief that such experiences should not be kept under wraps. They are invaluable to other people and should be shared.”
Interestingly, in nearly all the stories, the vehicles are never recovered even when they have tracking devices. And where they have been found, they are in a vandalised state, meaning that the gangsters cart off the parts to resell in a market where motorists buy second hand spare parts without asking too many questions, inadvertently creating a market for stolen parts.
But in all the anecdotes, Gathirwa emphasises that for one to survive a carjacking unscathed, it is important to co-operate with one’s tormentors. Carjackings are crimes of power. The armed gangsters want to be in control. They demand to be obeyed. And they seldom spare those who defy their orders. Even when one is ordered to drink suspicious concoctions, Gathirwa advises motorists to comply. At best, he says, the concoctions, usually laced with drugs, with knock you out for a while. But once a bullet has been fired at your head, neck or heart, the chances of survival are next to nil.
In the introduction to the book, former police commissioner Mathew Iteere says that “the influx of refugees and proliferation of illegal small arms are largely to blame for the increase in such robberies and other violent crimes in our country”. He says that from police statistics, crimes increase during rainy seasons an in the evenings.
Indeed, with the exception of a few cases in the book which occured in the morning or high noon, most of the incidents happened in the night, in dark places and in environments with which the motorists are not very familiar. In one case, a motorist had dropped off a friend on Kamiti road after a drink when gangsters struck. In another, a taxi driver in Nakuru was carjacked while waiting for a client to confirm whether the hotel he had driven into had room for the night.
This is not the first book that Gathirwa, 50, has self-published. He is also the author of The Art of Better Living, which was in 2006 approved by the Kenya Institute of Education as text for guidance and counselling in secondary schoools. He says the book has sold over 100,000 copies as a result. He is also the author of A Collection of Gikuyu Proverbs in Clusters, which contains more than 2,000 proverbs in both Kikuyu and English translation.

Some of the survivor tips that the author proposes

If you go out for a drink, go to a place that is properly fenced and has visible security personnel manning the car park. Danger lurks in open parking spaces.
Never go straight to your car without first checking the surrounding. Be aware of your surroundings at all times particularly at night or early morning hours.
Avoid driving or parking your car in desolate places.
Never fail to report a carjacking incident to the police, whether you are injured or not. Make a report even if you lose nothing to the robbers.
Do not stare at your attackers. Keep your hands in plain view and make no quick or sudden movements that the attackers could construe as a counterattack.
Do not panick. If you do, your nervousness will make the thugs think you want to resist or shout for help.
Most carjackers are rookies. They panic easily, so be calm to avoid unsettling their nerves.
Some carjackers are simply petty thieves. Give them whatever they demand, usually money or mobile phones. That may be all they are after.
It always pays to co-operate with thugs when you are their hostage.