The overall impression is that Ngugi has retained the substance and thrust of the earlier text, strengthened the focus and structure of his arguments and made some attempt to recast the polemical bluntness of the first edition. Although, of course, both editions are valuable as explicit markers in the process of Ngugi's developing reformist views, the revised edition, extending and reflecting on its prototype, is unequivocally the better book.-

- Diane Schwerdt, AFSAAP

... from the 1970s on, Ngugi's commitment has never faltered, and his involvement has only become more outspoken and uncompromising, and one function of the re-edition is to bring earlier material more in line with the developments in his political stance since the appearance of the original in 1981. -

- Patrick Williams, JOURNAL OF MODERN AFRICAN STUDIES