Told from the perspectives of local residents, Nakuru Song provides a first-person look at a country where hope is struggling to survive against monumental complacency. While Ken coaches a football team to keep boys off the street and James works tirelessly at the Melon Orphanage, countless other Kenyans live on: legions of children sniff glue to avoid hunger, other collect scrap metals for their income, and middle-aged men mix formaldehyde and jet fuel to create the "illicit brew."