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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
A solid 5 star read. My students are learning about green energies and although I wouldn’t have time to read the book in it’s entirety, I definitely could spotlight a few chapters for them.
I also read the picture book; it is fantastic.
The story centers around William Kamkwamba. He grew up in Malawi. During droughts and famine he devised a plan to help his family. His determination against all odds is truly inspiring. Today he continues to help rural towns and he has even created the “Moving Windmills Project”.
Read Across Africa Challenge
Malawi 🇲🇼
Prompt complete
Book 2/54
I also read the picture book; it is fantastic.
The story centers around William Kamkwamba. He grew up in Malawi. During droughts and famine he devised a plan to help his family. His determination against all odds is truly inspiring. Today he continues to help rural towns and he has even created the “Moving Windmills Project”.
Read Across Africa Challenge
Malawi 🇲🇼
Prompt complete
Book 2/54
I thought this book was about an African boy making a windmill, but it's only 15 chapters long and he doesn't even learn what a windmill is until chapter 9 or 10. If you can make it through 9 chapters on African magic and family history and what it's like to slowly starve and not be able to afford school, you will be rewarded with a few great chapters about an African boy making a windmill. Those chapters were super.
Fantastic picture book to introduce my students to renewable energy. Really loved learning his story !
Read across Africa challenge (Malawi)
1/54
Read across Africa challenge (Malawi)
1/54
inspiring
fast-paced
This wonderful book tells the true story of William Kamkwamba, who, unable to attend school because of poverty, spends his time building a windmill to generate power for his family's home. William has appeared many places recently, including NPR and the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, so some elements of his story are well known, particularly his inability to afford school and the construction of the windmill itself. What makes this book such a pleasure to read is the amount of space it dedicates to the years of William's life that interviews rarely have time to cover. Especially interesting are passages dealing with the daily customs of village life in Malawi, the relationship between Africans and dogs, family taboos, the educational system, and, most importantly, the Malawian famine of 2002 that did so much harm to William, his family, and their village. Highly recommended for teen readers and anyone interested in science and invention, modern Africa, or inspirational stories.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
cried three times analyzing a single passage in this book which probably means it's good
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Rarely ever happens when you read a memoir and it makes you want to meet that person and shake hands with them, hoping their sparks of curiosity and genius rub off on you, William Kamkwanba is one of those people.
The book spans Williams' life as a child and teenager, shares refreshing tidbits about Malawian food, culture, folklore, and rural life along with the hardships of disease, famine, and abject poverty despite which a very young William kept his curiosity alive and sought out solutions that could help his family survive and eventually allows him to go back to school.
I am certain William and his story will continue to inspire people for years to come, and the light that flickered in the bulbs in his house with the electric wind he harnessed will enlighten the lives of innumerable others.
The book spans Williams' life as a child and teenager, shares refreshing tidbits about Malawian food, culture, folklore, and rural life along with the hardships of disease, famine, and abject poverty despite which a very young William kept his curiosity alive and sought out solutions that could help his family survive and eventually allows him to go back to school.
I am certain William and his story will continue to inspire people for years to come, and the light that flickered in the bulbs in his house with the electric wind he harnessed will enlighten the lives of innumerable others.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
This was a really inspiring, emotional story about hope and innovation. It was a little slow and took time for me to really get into it, and some of the technical descriptions got very detailed so it was easy to let my mind wander–but overall I learned a lot through this novel and it was a story filled with nothing but heart from William Kamkwamba.
Yes, I cried when the dog died.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death