F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, "The reason someone writes is not because they want to say something. They write because they have something to say." This quote applies directly to the novel A Grain of Wheat by Ngugi Wa Thiong. From this quote you might infer that some writers write not just for the pleasure of it, but rather out of a feeling of obligation to let readers hear what they might have to say. Ngugi's message that he feels compelled to convey is delivered, however, to get there, he uses a very unusual writing technique. He wants readers to understand the pain, suffering and confusion that took place during the emergency. Through a confusing chronological order, numerous changes in characters and points of view, and a powerful conclusion, Ngugi delivers his message with immense authority. The writing style that Ngugi uses in this novel is quite impressive. The most obvious difference in this writing compared to the other two stories we have read is that, without maintaining chronological order, it travels from the beginning of the Emergency in Kenya to the end of the Emergency. The complexity of this temporal shift can be understood by examining the first four chapters. Ngugi begins the novel with Mugo experiencing a nightmare six days before Uhuru. Immediately readers begin to wonder exactly what is going on. Then Mugo wakes up and starts walking around the city. The entire first chapter follows Mugo through his day. Ngugi gives readers the names of people who are not yet significant in the story. At the beginning of the second chapter, Ngugi proceeds to take readers through a history lesson of the onset of the Emergency. Begin by examining the original leaders of the movement and explain… in the middle of the paper… say something. He writes because he has something to say,” he made a valid statement. Not every writer has something that needs to be heard, but some authors do. Ngugi found a truly unique way of conveying a message that needed to be heard, with great strength and passion. Works CitedHall, Donald. Literary and cultural theory: from basic principles to advanced applications. Boston:Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001.Miall, David. "Poetics 19." Reader Response to Fiction: Evaluating, Relating, Anticipating (1990): 323-339. Palmer, Eustace. An introduction to the African novel. New York: Africana Publishing Corporation, 1972. Thiong'o, Ngugi. A grain of wheat. Jordan Hill, Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers, 1986. Vipond, Hunt. “Focused Comprehension: Pragmatic and Cognitive Dimensions of Literary Reading.” Poetics 13 (1984): 261-277.