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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
Impressive kid with an inspiring story (and a good example for the un-schooling movement, though I am sure William would not agree)
challenging
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
I read this book for book club. I wouldn't normally pick this up and it took me 2 months of having to get round to reading it...but WOW! I loved it. I love book club becuase it makes me read books I wouldn't normally choose and this was one of my favourite books of the year. It is the true story of William Kamkwamba's childhood - to present day, but includes stories from his father and grandfather which make it very interesting.
It is so inspirational and makes you realise firstly how much we have and take for granted, and also how much we can achieve if we really put our minds to it.
Read this book, it is an inspiration.
It is so inspirational and makes you realise firstly how much we have and take for granted, and also how much we can achieve if we really put our minds to it.
Read this book, it is an inspiration.
The audiobook was fantastic. I loved hearing the stories William shared about being curious and visiting his library and just trying something out. I loved the conversations he had with his friends and cousins. If you listen to the audiobook, grab a print copy too - for the photographs and drawings!
What a beautiful story about a remarkable young man. I learned so much about Malawi and finished the book feeling grateful, grateful to have a termite free home, electricity, and plenty of food in the cupboards. It blows my mind that I was alive during the famine Kamkwamba writes about and had no idea.
5 Stars.
5 Stars.
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is just as compelling as an account of poverty and famine in Malawi as the story of Kamkwamba's intellectual curiosity and skill. He provides a disturbing picture of living on the edge of starvation, making his passion for invention and discovery even more stunning.
inspiring
medium-paced
This is a rather lovely memoir by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer about William's childhood in Malawi. He and his family live through a famine alongside the whole country and it means that William has to drop out of school due to a lack of funding. He gets himself to the Wimbe community library to stave off boredom and to try to keep up with studies by himself and finds a book on physics that leads him to build a windmill to create electricity. Very inspirational, although the famine was truly horrendous, and the memoir is a testament to William's curiosity, determination, and ingenuity.
I am still in awe over the accomplishments of this young man, William Kamkwamba, who built a windmill from scraps to bring electricity to his home in Malawi. As a teenager, William didn't have money to go to secondary school, so he continues his education on his own via the public library - shout out for public libraries!!! - finds books on physics and energy, and teaches himself how to build a windmill so he and his family can have electric lights. Mind-boggling what this teenager is able to do with scraps and ingenuity, and really raises the question: if an impoverished, self-educated teenager can find a way to get clean energy for himself, why aren't we?
It's a great book if you need some inspiration to keep moving, or, alternately, if you need to feel like a failure at life because you are so much older than this kid. Either way!
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