A summary of Henry R. ole Kulet’s Novel Blossoms of the Savannah
This story revolves around a family that is forced to relocate from the cosmopolitan town of Nakuru to a remote town of Nasila. This is after Persimei Ole Kaelo, the head and bread winner of the family, is retrenched from his place of employment of over 20 years. It is a new beginning for the family, especially Ole Kaelo’s daughters Taiyo and Resian who will have to learn the traditions of their new community in Nasila. This also means that the dream of the girls to advance their education past O-level might not materialize given that formal education among the Nasila dwellers is perceived unnecessary. The biggest challenge for girls, however, is the culture of female genital mutilation and subsequent early marriage among the Maa community.
These fears are confirmed when Maa elders in the homecoming ceremony insist that Ole Kaelo and his family must live according to the dictates of the Maa culture or be ostracized. To the elders, Nasila is no place for intoinye nemengalana (uncircumcised girls). As a result, Ole Kaelo heeds to their call and organizes for the girls to be taught the Maa culture and be prepared for the cut. Pressure for Resian to undergo FGM mounts further when the man who helps Ole Kaelo to set up a business in Nasila after his retrenchment demands Resian’s hand in marriage. However, Resian who has always dreamt of joining Egerton University resists and elopes with Olarinkoi who promises to deliver her in the safe hands of a girls’ rights crusader called Minik. Little does she know that this is trap set by the man to kidnap her and forcefully marry her after getting her circumcised.
Resian’s resilience is seen when she fights off Olarinkoi’s rape attempts and later on successfully escapes to Minik with the help of a woman who had come to nurse her after she was beaten by Olarinkoi.