The following version of this novel was used to create this study guide: Makumbi, Jennifer Nansubuga. Kintu. Transit Books, 2017. Paperback.

Book one follows the life of Kintu, the initial patriarch of the Kintu clan. He starts his journey to the capital of Buganda, thinking of his twin wives Nnakato and Babyrie. It is revealed that he never wanted to marry Babyrie, but was eventually forced to when Nnakato was unable to conceive. However, he is planning on giving his inheritance to the single child she was able to have (of the nine in their immediate family) named Baale. However, halfway through the trip, Kintu slaps his adopted son, Kalema, when he catches him drinking from Kintu’s own gourd. This leads to his real father, Twire, cursing the family for generations, which leads to Baale’s death, Nnakato’s suicide, and Kintu’s loss of sanity. However, the family survives through a woman named Zaya, who is pregnant with Baale’s child.

Book two tells the story of Suubi, a young woman who suffered extreme abuse and neglect as a a child when her twin sister, Ssaynu died, but Suubi did not. Everyone around her expects her to die, as they believe twins always come back for each other. However, Suubi survives into adulthood, but forces herself to forget every bad thing that happened, including an almost abduction when she was a teenager. Her real mother asks Suubi to attend the family gathering around Easter to help regain Suubi’s memories and connection to the clan.

Book three follows Kanami Kintu, a devout Christian who is part of the Awakened group; a super strict religious organization. However, Kanami struggles with his faith and doubts his God, especially after his grandson Paulo is born. Kanami and his wife, Faisi, neglected their twin children in favor of sowing the seeds of god which eventually leads to his daughter, Ruth, getting pregnant. She is sent away to live with Kanami’s sister, Magda, where she has the baby and feels more welcome than she ever did back home. Once Paulo is older, he is torn between his grandparents and his mother as neither get along. At the end of the book, Kanami receives an invitation to the family gathering, and struggles with the idea that Paulo may be a manifestation of the family curse, and Kanami himself thinks he has no protection from God after all.

Book four focuses on Isaac Newton Kintu, a child born of rape. His mother abandoned him when he was young, and he did not mature at the same pace as other children. However, Isaac is extremely bright and scores high on his primary exams, even though he is unable to afford college. After living through the war, Isaac develops severe anxiety, paranoia, and struggles to reconnect with his mother after she seeks him out. Eventually, he meets a man named Sasa who teaches Isaac how to be a deejay. When Sasa passes away from HIV, Isaac takes over the business and eventually impregnates Nnayiga. The two end up marrying despite the difficult and manipulative start to their relationship, and grow to love each other over the years. She dies shortly after giving birth to Kizza, and Isaac- who refuses to get himself or Kizza tested due to his anxiety- thinks Nnayiga died from HIV.

Book five tells the story of Miisi Kintu who is revealed to be a direct descendant to Baale which makes him the heir of the clan. Miisi was educated in Europe, and many people in his village see him as pompous and westernized. However, Miisi just wants to take care of his grandchildren after losing all but one of his children to various illnesses and the war. He is deeply cynical of Christianity, but he does not have any connection to his clan’s beliefs either. However, because Miisi dreams of the location of his clan’s ancestors and their ancestral home, he is promoted to the role of leader in the upcoming family gathering.

Book six brings all of the characters together as they enjoy a reunion at their ancestral home near the village of Kiyiika. Everyone bonds over the shared curse, even though some (like Suuki and Isaac) say it is hereditary mental illness. After the elders locate the remains of Kintu, Kalema, and Nnakato, the medium asks everyone to tell their woes to a stick which they will burn on the altar.

Suubi is possessed by her dead sister who breaks her wrists for trying to get rid of her. Suubi later accepts her sister’s presence in her life after the ordeal.

Kanami reveals that Paulo is a child of incest, which means Paulo has direct blood relation to the clan through his father, Job. Kanami later dies of heart failure and Job takes his place as the elder.

Isaac feels immense relief during the rituals, but Lastly, Miisi helps with the planning, but later tries to commit suicide as he believes he and his son Kizza are doomed to die of HIV anyway. However, he and Kizza both survive the crash and, after learning they are both HIV negative, decides that his son’s life is the most important thing to him.

Lastly, Miisi helps the elders find the remains and complete the rituals, even though he is cynical about the whole thing. When he learns that his son Kamu is dead, Miisi’s mind breaks between two realities; the real world and a world he creates. He eventually runs back to Kiyiika in his delusions and stays there to bear the curses of anyone else in the clan that needs it.