Sargrenti is the name by which Major General Sir Garnet Wolseley, KCMG (1833 -- 1913) is still known in the West African state of Ghana. Kofi Gyan, the 15-year old boy who spits in Sargrenti's eye, is the nephew of the chief of Elmina, a town on the Atlantic coast of Ghana. On Christmas Day, 1871, Kofi's godfather gives him a diary as a Christmas present and charges him with the task of keeping a personal record of the momentous events through which they are living. This novel is a transcription of Kofi's diary."On 13 June, 1873 British forces bombarded Elmina Town and destroyed it. It was never rebuilt. Later that same year, using seaborne artillery, the British flattened ten coastal towns and villages - including Axim, Takoradi and Sekondi. On 6th February, 1874, after looting the Asantehene's palace in Kumase, British troops blew up the stone building and set the city on fire, razing it to the ground. 15-year old Kofi Gyan witnesses these events and records them in his diary. This novel, first published soon after the 140th anniversary of the sack of Kumase, tells his story."--Back cover.