One peculiar lesson I picked from this book is that despite the sadness detailed in their bloodline, the family remained strong-willed, bold, united, and came together as a strong force to undo that which tends to purge them apart. The book’s climax was when the whole Kintu lineage began locating one another to rid themselves of the curse. In addition, they are afflicted with sudden death, accidents, religious conflict/conflict of faith, poverty, and infectious diseases (HIV/Aids). We begin to see different characters, all from the Kintu bloodline, who exhibited strange and aberrant behaviors like unfaithfulness, improper sexual relationship (incest in this case), pride, depression for the reason of the curse, and other mental health conditions. The most interesting thing about this book is the fact that the main events actually started happening after the curse. Kalema’s death and his subsequent “ improper” burial led to his father cursing the whole Kintu lineage. I don’t intend to make this review a spoiler, but I need to write certain details to show why this book is worthwhile. (This reminds me of Okonkwo and Ikemefuna in Things Fall Apart). Out of rage, he struck Kalema, an action which later led to the boy’s death. On one of such trips, Kalema committed an act Kintu found insulting. He married two sisters, Nnakato and her twin, Babirye. The Ppookino was obliged by tradition to visit small clans to ensure the laws of the land were adhered to as custom dictates.

Karma was the son of Kidda Kintu, who, according to history, was from Rwanda. It all started with the death of Kalema, a boy who was supposed to be a page boy, to Kintu, the Ppookino (chief) of the Buddy province of 18th century Buganda kingdom (now Uganda). This is almost similar to when God, in Exodus 34:7, decides to visit the fathers’ iniquities onto the fourth generation. A curse meant to succeed from one family lineage to another. Kintu is a well-researched book and can serve as reference material for anyone interested in Ugandan history, the ugliness of colonialism, Christian conflicts/ conflict of belief (what I term the ills of interdenominational Christianity), and the complexity of love (incest) in this case. This book left me wanting, questioning, and at some point, hoping for a sequel. It describes the history of Uganda in a fictional yet epic and surreal manner that leaves you thrilled, annoyed, and captivated all at once. This book dates back to the pre-colonial and colonial eras of Uganda.

Kintu book review