Summary
Throughout the famine, Khamba was given very little to eat, as there was barely enough food for the humans, let alone a dog. William tried to increase his morale by hunting again, although they had to use some ash as bait instead of maize or gaga. Without the proper bait, the birds didn't fall for the trap and never aligned with the kill zone, rendering the hunt unsuccessful.
Following the hunt, Khamba looked thinner and weaker every day, and when Charity and Mizeck from the mphala saw him, they convinced William to "put the thing out of his misery." William, although unwilling, went along with the plan and took him to a forest. With the help of his cousin Charity, they told Khamba that they're going to hunt again, but instead led him to a tree and tied him to it. Khamba seemed aware of what was happening, and cried because "he knew I was leaving him." This awareness haunted William when he went back the next day to check if Khamba was alive, because it was as if, without William to follow, Khamba lost the will to live and died. The cousins buried him in the woods.
Shortly after Khamba's death, a cholera outbreak striked the country, in addition to the ever growing famine that enveloped the nation. Several disturbing signs of famine occurred: Geoffrey began to swell and was unable to walk; William's belts no longer fit and he could see the bones through his skin; and Trywell began to weigh himself. Although he forbade his family members to weigh themselves, he did so almost religiously, worried that "hunger... only kills men." Disease, however, did not distinguish between the genders. Mayless, William's little sister, grew sick with malaria, but was unable to go to the hospital because of the cholera outbreak. Luckily, she survived, but like everyone else, she was a ghost of herself.
However, signs of hope began to appear throughout Malawi. The Kamkwamba tobacco crop was ready for pruning, but needed to be dried before being sold. However, desperate for food, Trywell made several deals with traders to sell them the tobacco when ready. All Malawians eagerly checked their crops to see if they were ready to be eaten, and when it finally was, William was one of the first to consume it. He took the dowe and cooked it in the kitchen, eating it quickly and relishing in the belief that they would live.
The readiness of the crop lifted the spirits of the people, and relations began to return to normal. Although the harvest had not yet happened, and the family was still only eating one meal of nsima per day, the end was in sight. However, there were those that stole from the farms, taking dowe and consuming them to the core. Trywell demonstrated an extraordinary amount of forgiveness and instead of calling the police, explained to William that "everyone has the same hunger."
Analysis
During the hunt, William describes in juicy detail a daydream he has of catching birds and feasting on them as he had done in the past. In his desperation, images of dead birds and the smell of roasting flesh haunts William. The language of this dream sequence has the same direct, simple language as William's more inventive moments. The simple sentence structure of "I" followed by a verb in the past tense makes the scene so much more visceral, and William's physical reaction to this daydream of salivation also gives the reader a sense of his hunger (142). However, the fantasy is shattered soon after with "a burst of wings," movement that appears so suddenly and completely that William loses all hope for catching any of the birds (143).
The decision to leave Khamba in the forest is also one riddled with emotion for William. He repeats certain phrases to convince himself that he made the right decision in bringing his dog out to die. For example, Charity says to him "it's just a dog," emphasizing how animal life is often less valued than human life (146). Khamba is obviously not just a dog to William, but he repeats this phrase multiple times to convince himself of the fact, including after he destroys Khamba's food bowl. Later, however, William refers to him as "my dog," indicating that years later, he does not think of the animal as "just a dog," but instead as a companion that was forced to die because of the circumstances of the famine (148).
During the ripening of the crops, the lushness of their leaves is constantly compared to the frailty of the human body. For example, "while men withered and died all around, our plants were looking strong and fat," indicating an ironic upheaval of circumstances that represents that the famine will soon end, but that the people who experienced it have suffered greatly (154).
The day that the dowe finally ripens, language explodes with joy. After anticipating this moment for months, when William realizes they are ready to be eaten, he writes in all capitals "DOWE IS READY!" (156). This excitement is felt by all who help harvest the crop that day, but the capitalization of the words here visually distinguishes this line from the rest of the page, indicating a great change, in this case a change for the better. William goes on to describe the kernels as "filled with the essence of God," indicating a religious and almost heavenly release from the suffering of the past few months (157).
