NGŨGĨ WA THIONG'O is a pioneering writer in the African literary scene. He was born in Limuru, Kenya, in 1938 and educated at Alliance High School, and at Makerere and Leeds Universities. His first novel, Weep Not, Child was published in 1964 and made the world realise that writers in Africa were making a fresh and original contribution to world literature. He has taught literature for many years in universities in numerous countries - including Makerere, 
Nairobi and Northeastern Universities. A renowned literary critic worldwide, Ngũgĩ is an active campaigner for the 
African language and form, and he writes, travels and lectures extensively on this theme. He has written novels, plays, 
collection of short stories, and collection of essays on writing in Africa and the Caribbean. Most of his works are published in the Peak Library. This collection of Ngũgi's early stories displays his immense skills as a storyteller. 
He vividly portrays a world of magic and superstition which has not been erased by the 'white strangers' and their new religion. For instance, in The Village Priest, the rainmaker still exerts deep-rooted power, while the priest cannot deal 
in certainties, nor work miracles to end the drought, and A Meeting in the Dark sees the central character caught in a 
moral dilemma and ancient tribal customs are shown in conflict and cause tragedy.