A damning satrie of politics and corruption in Kenya that became the catalyst of Ngugi Wa Thiong'o's imprisonment by the Kenyan government, now published in }Vintage Classics{ for the first time After decades of British rule Kenya has declared its independence, but drought and poor harvests still govern the village of Ilmorog. Undeterred, Munira, Karega, Wanja and Abdulla each move to Ilmorog in search of a more provincial life, only to find themselves suspects in a crime that signals a dark turning of the times.