Giant of African literature Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o die at 87
Wia dis foto come from, Ngugi Wa Thiong'o
Kenya writer Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, one of di ogbonge writers for East Africa die on Wednesday, at di age of 87.
Im daughter, Wanjiku Wa Ngũgĩ, announce im death for Facebook.
"Na wit heavy heart we take dey announce di ing of our papa, Ngugi wa Thiong'o dis Wednesday morning," she write.
"Im live full life, fight good fight," she add.
Di giant of modern African literature, be storyteller wey refuse to allow prison, exile and sickness tie am down.
End of Di one wey oda s dey read well well
Im work don dey for almost sixty years, and dem mostly document how in kontrI – Kenya take transform from colonialism to democracy.
Ngũgĩ bin get nomination to win Nobel Prize for Literature plenty times, e disappoint im fans each time di medal enta anoda pesin hand.
Pipo go am as not only a writer wey deserve to win di Nobel, but also as strong er of literature wey dem write in African languages.
Some of im popular books
Ngugi write 108 works wey include novels, plays, short stories, essays and children book.
One of im books wey pipo don read di most online na A Grain of Wheat.
Im short story Di Upright Revolution, or why Humans Walk Upright, get translations for over 100 languages. Dis one show say im work travel reach different parts of di world.
Oda popular work wey im write na Weep Not, Child, Di River Between, Petals of Blood, Wizard of di Crow, Di Black Hermit, Ngaahika Ndeenda (I Will Marry When I Want) wey bin collabo write wit Ngũgĩ wa Mirii.
Wia dis foto come from, Getty Images
Who be Ngũgĩ Thiong'o?
Dem born Ngũgĩ as James Thiong'o Ngũgĩ for 1938, wnen Kenya bin dey under British colonial rule.
Im grow up for di town of Limuru for large family of poor farmers.
Im parents manage gada money pay im school fees for Alliance, one boarding school wey British missionaries bin dey run.
Inside one interview, Ngũgĩ wen im go back home from Alliance for end of term, im find say di colonial authorities don burn down di whole of im village.
Im family bin dey among di hundreds and thousands of pipo wey dem force to live for detention camp during one raid on di Mau Mau, one movement of independence fighters.
Di Mau Mau uprising wey bin last from 1952 to 1960, affect Ngũgĩ's life in many painful ways.
One of di most painful one na di shooting of Ngũgĩ's brother, Gitogo, becos im refuse to obey one British soldier command.
Gitogo bin no hear di command becos im dey deaf.
For 1959, as di British bin dey struggle to maintain dia hold on Kenya, Ngũgĩ leave to go study for Uganda.
Im get ission for Makerere University, wey still be one of Africa most respected universities.
During one writers conference for Makerere, Ngũgĩ share one draft of in first novel wit ogbonge Nigeria author Chinua Achebe.
Achebe send di draft to im publisher for UK and dem release di book, wey dem call Weep Not, Child, and e blow for 1964.
E bin be di first major English-language novel wey person from East Africa ever write.
Ngũgĩ sharply follow up wit two more popular novels, A Grain of Wheat and The River Between.
For 1972, UK Times newspaper say Ngũgĩ, wey bin dey 33 years dat time dey "accepted as one of Africa outstanding contemporary writers".
Change of name
Den 1977 come – dis na di period wey mark very big change for Ngũgĩ's life and career.
First, na for dis year im drop di name James wey im parents give am, e become Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o.
Ngũgĩ make dis change becos im bin want name wey dey free am from colonial influence.
Im also stop to use English as di main language for im literature and promise to only write for im local, Kikuyu.
Im publish im last English language novel, Petals of Blood, for 1977.
Ngũgĩ's books from before bin criticise di colonial goment, but Petals of Blood attack di new leaders of independent Kenya, presenting dem as big men class wey betray di ordinary Kenya pipo.
Im no stop dia. Dat same year, im do one collabo write di play Ngaahika Ndeenda (I Will Marry When I Want), wey torchlight Kenya class struggle.
Goment of President Jomo Kenyatta close di theatre and dem lock Ngũgĩ for maximum security prison for one year without trial.
Di 12 months bin worth am sha, - as Ngũgĩ write im first Kikuyu novel, Devil on di Cross, inside prison.
Tori be say na toilet paper im bin use to write di whole book, as im bin no get access to notebook.
Wia dis foto come from, Ngugi Wa Thiong'o
Ngũgĩ get im freedom afta Daniel arap Moi replace Kenyatta as president.
Four years later, wen im be dey for one book launch for London, im bin learn say dem bin dey plan to kill an wen im return to Kenya.
E put imsef on sef-impose exile for UK and for US. Im no go back to Kenya for 22 years.
Wen im finally return, im pipo welcome am like hero - thousands of Kenya pipo show to greet him.
But di fine welcome no make sense afta some jaguda pipo enta im house brutally attack Ngũgĩ and rape im wife.
Ngũgĩ insist say di assault dey political.
Im return to US, wia im bin be professor for universities including Yale, New York and California Irvine.
In academia and beyond, dem bin sabi Ngũgĩ as one of di leading advocates of literature wey dem write in African languages.
Throughout im career - and to dis day - African literature bin dey dominated by books wey dem write in English or French, di official languages for most of di kontris for di continent.
"Wetin be di difference between politician wey say Africa no fit do without colonialism and di writer wey say Africa no fit do without European languages");