Njoroge initially has a hard time adjusting to life at school, but his old friend Mwihaki helps him. Mwihaki is the daughter of Jacobo, a rich Gikuyu pyrethrum farmer who owns the land that Ngotho and his family live on. One evening, Ngotho tells his wives and children – Kori, Boro, Kamau, and Njoroge – stories about how the British stole the Gikuyu land. These events particularly upset Boro, who believes his father complicit in the injustice by working for Mr. Howlands. Boro has been troubled ever since he lost his brother when they were fighting together in World War II.