Elephants falling from the sky?

Mention the word elephant and you have my undivided attention. When recently in Kenya and staying at the Sarova Panafric Hotel, where the Africa Travel Association and the Kenyan Ministry of East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism had booked a 20-strong international media team invited to cover the congress, I saw in a document on the reception desk a booking for a book launch on November 27, a book titled “An Elephant Fell From The Sky.”

Curious by nature and investigative by profession, I set out to find out more about the launch, the book and the author and finally made headway in getting the facts together.

Karigu Kiragu, the author, lives in Mombasa but is a lecturer at the University of Nairobi, besides running her own consulting firm. She is also the Director of Research and Publications for the Kenya Association of Project Managers, and as such an almost unlikely candidate to write such a book, and yet she did.

Inspired by hearing the stories of the Tharaka legend Kibuka at a young age she felt compelled to put the lore and stories into writing to preserve them for future generations, paying tribute to her cultural background and upbringing in a way few others today do. Through the narrative of the book will readers be able to understand better the culture of the Tharaka and use the lessons the book teaches for a more harmonious way of living together today, regardless of tribe, ethnic background or religious beliefs.

Said Karigu in a brief communication, when asked to characterize her first ever book and talk about the intriguing title:

Start quote:
Kibuka the Tharaka Legend

The narrative of the Tharaka Legend Kibũka would take very many days to tell. The actions of this great man, who

actually walked the land as a leader of the Atharaka people, captivate both the young and old. To this day, when people come into contact with his stories or visit sites associated with Kibũka – the sites mentioned actually exist to this day: Kibũka falls, Kibũka the area and Kibũka’s homestead – it elicits the same reverence that was accorded him then – many years ago. Myth or fact, Kibũka the hero still lives on. Thus, his story has been broken down into series.

Who knew, that an elephant would take on the role, form or colour other than that of a true elephant?