4.0
Wizard of the Crow
ByPublisher Description
A landmark of postcolonial African literature, Wizard of the Crow is an ambitious, magisterial, comic novel from the acclaimed Kenyan novelist, playwright, poet, and critic.
“Wizard of the Crow is first and foremost a great, spellbinding tale, probably the crowning glory of Ngugi’s life’s work. . . . He has turned the power of storytelling into a weapon against totalitarianism.” —The Washington Post Book World
Set in the fictional Free Republic of Aburiria, Wizard of the Crow dramatizes with corrosive humor and keenness of observation a battle for the souls of the Aburirian people, between a megalomaniac dictator and an unemployed young man who embraces the mantle of a magician. Fashioning the stories of the powerful and the ordinary into a dazzling mosaic, in this magnificent work of magical realism, Ngugi wa'Thiong'o—one of the most widely read African writers—reveals humanity in all its endlessly surprising complexity.
“Wizard of the Crow is first and foremost a great, spellbinding tale, probably the crowning glory of Ngugi’s life’s work. . . . He has turned the power of storytelling into a weapon against totalitarianism.” —The Washington Post Book World
Set in the fictional Free Republic of Aburiria, Wizard of the Crow dramatizes with corrosive humor and keenness of observation a battle for the souls of the Aburirian people, between a megalomaniac dictator and an unemployed young man who embraces the mantle of a magician. Fashioning the stories of the powerful and the ordinary into a dazzling mosaic, in this magnificent work of magical realism, Ngugi wa'Thiong'o—one of the most widely read African writers—reveals humanity in all its endlessly surprising complexity.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesWizard of the Crow Reviews
4.0
Heather
Created about 12 hours agoShare
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Mvtheu
Created 18 days agoShare
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“This was one of the best stories I’ve ever read, one of the best books I’ve ever read. There were so many times where I laughed out loud as well. Thiong’o crafted a witty and humorous political satire through insane folktale storytelling. From corruption to totalitarianism to neocolonialism to exploitation to oppositional movements to female collectivity to storytelling as opposition and much more. There is so much that is explored within this story and it is incorporated and executed so damn well. This book is what I feel like real storytelling, real literature looks like. I was saddened to see that Thiong’o passed earlier this year, but his impact on African literature and literature as a whole lives on; and I will be reading more of him in the future.
Damn good book🥲”
CC
Created about 2 months agoShare
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Jaana Mõtsar
Created about 2 months agoShare
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About Ngugi wa Thiong'o
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1938–2025) was an award-winning novelist, playwright, and essayist from Kenya whose novels have been translated into more than thirty languages. His many books include Wizard of the Crow, Dreams in a Time of War, Devil on the Cross, Decolonising the Mind, and Petals of Blood, for which he was imprisoned by the Kenyan government in 1977.
Other books by Ngugi wa Thiong'o
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