Reviews

Herr der Krähen, by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o

matt717's review against another edition

adventurous funny reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

smuds2's review against another edition

dark funny informative lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Echoing what other reviews have said - this book reads like an 800 page stage play. There is very minimal descriptions of the environment, internal character lives, scene setting etc. There is also very little character development. That is not to say it's bad, but it's still good to know going in to it, as it can feel a bit repetitive over time.

Ngugi takes on so many different ideas in this story, it's hard to keep track. Between colonialism, moving a pre-colonial culture into a new context, democracy, the power of language, corruptibility of money, and that's just to name a few. I could go on.

I would also add that trying to find a contemporary east African culture lecture on youtube if you can definitely will enrich the experience of reading the book. Some of the themes Ngugi discusses are universal, others are understandable with a basic concept of colonialism, but others seem to be much more directly related to Kenyan life that definitely went over my head.

booccmaster's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

emily_madcharo's review against another edition

dark funny hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

kwims's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

ahsansenan's review against another edition

5.0

I have not read a better book maybe since I read Cien Años de Soledad more than ten years ago.

busyblackbookworm's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

4.25

microtubes's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny inspiring slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

virginiamcc's review against another edition

funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

aw21594377's review against another edition

2.0

This book was very much a slog for me. I wasn't particularly attached to any of the characters and I felt like the ideas that were written about I had already read in other works. It did not feel particularly unique to me. I don't regret reading, but I probably wouldn't have finished if I hadn't been reading it for a book club. Maybe also if I had read this in school, I would have gotten more from it than I did.