American search engine Google is celebrating Kenyan literature giant Marjorie Phyllis Oludhe Macgoye via a doodle.
The artwork is meant to celebrate what would have been her 94th birthday. She died on December 1st, 2015.
Marjorie Oludhe Macgoye was a British novelist and poet who mostly wrote about the struggles of Kenya during its post-colonial era, but also published children’s books, magazine stories and much more.
Macgoye was academically gifted from an early age. Her mother was a teacher in Southampton and kept a close eye on her studies. She was awarded several scholarships in her youth and eventually attended the Royal Holloway College at the University of London for a bachelor’s degree in English. It was here that she found her love for writing through the many letters she wrote to her parents. Macgoye then went to Birkbeck College for her master’s degree in English where she specialized in poetry.
Shortly after graduating, Macgoye moved to Kenya and became a citizen in 1954. This was during a time of political tension and colonial conflict. During that time she often hosted literary projects that helped Kenyan women learn how to read and write. Macgoye also became involved in social activism, where she gave speeches and joined national debates regarding the experiences of women.
One of her more popular books “Coming to Brith” adeptly showcases the struggles of a young woman as she tries to conceive and the negativity she faces all while trying to adapt to city life. The book won the Sinclair Prize for fiction and was once a Kenyan Secondary School set book.
Her other notable works include Murder in Majengo (1972) and The Present Moment (1987).
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