SATA
ENTRY TYPE: new
WORK TITLE: PLAYING A DANGEROUS GAME
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Kisumu
STATE:
COUNTRY: Kenya
NATIONALITY: Kenyan
LAST VOLUME:
Call on +254 722 706800
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Male.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Lawyer and writer.
AWARDS:Shortlist, Golden Baobab Prize for African writers of children’s literature and young adult literature, 2010.
WRITINGS
Contributor to journals and periodicals, including Kikwetu, Munyori, and Brittle Paper.
SIDELIGHTS
Patrick Ochieng is a lawyer and writer. In 2010 he was shortlisted for the Golden Baobab Prize for African writers of children’s literature and young adult literature. Based in Kenya, Ochieng has published in a range of journals and periodicals, including Kikwetu, Munyori, and Brittle Paper.
Ochieng published the young adult novel Playing a Dangerous Game in 2021. After his father receives a promotion at work, Lumush is transferred to a nicer school. The new kids at school look down at him for his poorer origins, while his friends from his old school and neighborhood accuse him of becoming a different person by studying in an elite school. Lumush would normally spend his days hanging around an abandoned car and popping into a local house rumored to be haunted with his friends Odush, Dado, and Mose. They find a journal in the car that suggested that a murder may have happened in that haunted house but are not sure what to do with the evidence. When strange things begin to happen in their town, the boys start to think that there could be a connection.
Booklist contributor Jeanne Fredriksen claimed that the novel had “great appeal in the distinctive setting and the universal quality of the boys’ attitudes, camaraderie, and interactions.” A Kirkus Reviews contributor suggested that the realism of Lumush’s “world helps ground readers for an enjoyable ride despite uneven pacing.” The same reviewer concluded by calling Playing a Dangerous Game “an entertaining picture of a boy’s life between social classes.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, September 1, 2021, Jeanne Fredriksen, review of Playing a Dangerous Game, p. 71.
Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2021, review of Playing a Dangerous Game.
Patrick Ochieng is a lawyer and author who was shortlisted for the 2010 Golden Baobab Prize. He has been published in Kikwetu, Munyori, Brittle Paper, and other literary publications. He lives in Kisumu, Kenya, with his family.
Ochieng, Patrick PLAYING A DANGEROUS GAME Norton Young Readers (Children's None) $15.95 8, 17 ISBN: 978-1-324-01913-8
Four young friends help expose local criminals in this mystery set in 1970s Nairobi.
Lumush is starting at a new, fancier school, thanks to his father’s promotion. While adjusting to this new environment, where he is looked down upon by most, he spends his time after school trying to convince his friends from the neighborhood and his old school that he’s not changing. He and his friends Odush, Dado, and Mose hang out at an old, abandoned car, occasionally poking around a house people say is haunted by a White family that mysteriously died there. One day the boys find an old journal in the car, reading in it implications that a crime may have been committed that bears a striking resemblance to the deaths of the White family. The friends disagree over what to do with the information, but when strange things happen around town, they become more and more involved in trying to uncover the criminals until they finally reach a point of no return. Lumush is a sympathetic protagonist with believable, layered relationships with his family, teachers, and friends, and the setting is richly described. The realism of his world helps ground readers for an enjoyable ride despite uneven pacing, the less-believable element of the crime ring, and some thinly drawn supporting characters.
An entertaining picture of a boy’s life between social classes. (Historical mystery. 11-14)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2021 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
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"Ochieng, Patrick: PLAYING A DANGEROUS GAME." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Aug. 2021, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A671783255/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=6a0d4db1. Accessed 12 Mar. 2022.
Playing a Dangerous Game. By Patrick Ochieng. 2021. 208p. Norton/Young Readers, $17.95 (9781324019138). Gr. 6-9.
In the 1970s, 10-year-old Lumush lives with his family in Railway Estates in Kenya. A recent transfer to the snobbish English-language-only Hill School, Lumush much prefers spending time with his old friends from the local school. When the boys venture into a nearby "haunted house" on a dare, they overhear known locals talking about murder and a coffee-smuggling operation. The next time the boys return, they find more danger than they bargained for. This coming-of-age novel is part of the publisher's new initiative, Accord Books, to bring works by contemporary writers from Africa to English-speaking audiences. Debut author Ochieng fills his narrative with just enough details about the characters' lives, community, and history to keep the story lively. Be advised some conversations include mentions of male and female circumcision, tavern life, criminal activities, and death of contemporaries, and younger readers may benefit from additional guided discussions. Nevertheless, there's great appeal in the distinctive setting and the universal quality of the boys' attitudes, camaraderie, and interactions with their world. Look for more from this new voice from Kenya. --Jeanne Fredriksen
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2021 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
Fredriksen, Jeanne. "Playing a Dangerous Game." Booklist, vol. 118, no. 1, 1 Sept. 2021, p. 71. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A675268156/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=8f93d7eb. Accessed 12 Mar. 2022.