Kintu (novel)

Kintu is a novel by Ugandan author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi.[1][2][3] It was her doctoral novel, initially titled The Kintu Saga. It was shortlisted[4] and won the Kwani? Manuscript Project in 2013.[5] It was published by Kwani Trust in 2014 under the title Kintu.[6]

Kintu
Kintu by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
AuthorJennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
CountryUganda
LanguageEnglish
PublisherKwani Trust, Nairobi, Kenya
Publication date
2014
Media typePrint (hardback and paperback)
Pages442
ISBN978-9966-1598-9-2

Kintu is based on the Baganda history and focuses on generational curses, transgression, Baganda mythology and sexism that is engraved underneath each chapter of the book.[7]

Plot

In 1754, Kintu Kidda, Ppookino of Buddu Province, in the kingdom of Buganda, sets out on a journey to the capital where he is to pledge allegiance to the new kabaka of the realm. Along the way, a rash action in a moment of anger unleashes a curse that will plague his family for generations. Time passes and the nation of Uganda is born. Through colonial occupation and the turbulent early years of independence, Kintu’s heirs survive the loss of their land, the denigration of their culture and the ravages of war. But the story of their ancestor and his twin wives Nnakato and Babirye endures. So too does the curse.[8] Kintu’s descendants seek to break the burden of the curse and to reconcile the inheritance of tradition and the modern world that is their future. The novel explores the power of a curse in African society and the myth and power that surrounds twins. It describes how the princes of Buganda fought and killed one another for the throne and the role of the Queen Mothers in this power play.[9]

The book starts with a prologue about Kamu Kintu, who is brutally murdered by a mob in Bwaise, a suburb of Kampala, at dawn, on Monday, 5 January 2004. The novel then takes you back to 1750, to the beginning of the curse in the old kingdom of Buganda. Kintu follows the misfortunes of the Kintu clan more than 250 years ago, blending Ganda oral tradition, forms of myth, folktale and history with biblical elements. The novel explores ideas of transgression, curse and perpetuity, looking back at the history of the Buganda kingdom and tracing the birth of modern Uganda.[10][11][12]

Awards and recognition

References
  1. "Jennifer Makumbi's novel evokes marvels during writivism week". Newvision.co.ug. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  2. Kingwa Kamencu (7 April 2014). "Ugandan writer who turns established script on its head". Daily Nation. Kenya. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  3. Diane Ninsiiba (1 December 2015). "Interview with 2014 Commonwealth Short Story Prize Winner Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi". AfricaBookClub.com. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  4. "Interview with Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, shortlisted for her novel The Kintu Saga", kwani.org. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  5. "Winner: Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, The Kintu Saga", kwani.org. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  6. "Kwani Trust launch award-winning writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's debut novel Kintu", kwani.org, 16 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  7. Serpell, Namwali (12 September 2017). "The Great Africanstein Novel". The New York Review of Books. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  8. "KINTU by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi". Africa Writes. July 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  9. Bamuturaki Musinguzi (2 August 2014). "Jennifer Makumbi's tale of Kintu". The East African. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  10. Beatrice Lamwaka (28 June 2014). "Jennifer Makumbi narrates the Ugandan story in Kintu". Sunday Monitor. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  11. Nyana Kakoma (12 November 2014). "Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's 'Kintu' Made Me Want to Tell Our Stories". Africa in Words. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  12. Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire (9 December 2014). "Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi's". Music & Literature. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  13. 2014 Etisalat Prize for Literature announces longlist, news24.com.ng. Retrieved 7 November 2014.


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