Bryan MealerBesprekingen

Independent Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Awards: None

Independent Reading Level: Grades 3-5
Awards: None

“I went to sleep dreaming of Malawi, and all the things made possible when your dreams are powered by your heart.”

“Cool! Where did you get such an idea?” “The library.”

This is the memoir of a boy who grew up in rural Malawi and taught himself how to build a windmill to provide electricity and water to his village. William Kamkwambe was born in 1987 in Wimbe, Malawi, where his family grew maize and tobacco. William grew up in poverty, exacerbated by the terrible famine of 2001-2002. His parents were unable to afford for him to complete highschool. He spent 5 years unable to attend school, so spent much time in the library educating himself. From reading something in a book he had the inspiration to build a windmill. As a penniless but determined 14-year-old, he set about building his windmill out of local scraps and materials, despite the villagers calling him crazy. Eventually his success led to recognition and he was sponsored to finish his schooling. A movie has been made about William’s amazing achievements.

The book gives considerable insight into life in rural Malawi. The devastation of the famine and perpetual hunger was heartbreaking. The belief in witchcraft was widespread and entrenched even in the 2000s, and could lead to revenge killings. There is also some discussion of politics. Hastings Banda was president of Malawi for the 30 years between 1964 to 1994. Having grown up as a farmer himself he was very pro farming and provided fertilizer and seed at subsidized prices. The next President, Bakili Muluzi, was more concerned about business than agriculture, and removed many of the subsidies. He also sold off the government reserves of food used to supplement the families in times of crisis, with tragic consequences during the famine. William does not shy away from pointing out corruption and mismanagement where he sees it.

The book was written in conjunction with Bryan Mealer. The style was extremely simplistic and not overly well written, but still does not fail to deliver an amazing, inspirational story. I am embarrassed to say that despite the incredible human suffering portrayed, the scene that made me cry was the story of William’s dog, Khamba.

Independent Reading Level: 3rd-5th
Awards: none

Slow read til end. Too detailed, but amazing achievement. KIRKUS REVIEWThe author and his collaborator have condensed the original memoir of the same name, a story of an innovative and compassionate boy coming of age during an era of extreme hardship in Malawi.This newest incarnation of Kamkwamba?s tale is as absorbing as its predecessor and still delivers with equanimity facts both disturbing and inspiring. Kamkwamba describes his early life in Masitala, a tiny rural village where, typically, large families of subsistence farmers lived in huts without electricity or running water. Until December 2000, Kamkwamba?s life reads like an African parallel to the idyllic, early-20th-century scenes in Sterling North?s Rascal: soccer with balls made from plastic bags; juicy mangoes and crunchy grasshoppers; storytelling by the light of a kerosene lamp; experiments with old radio parts; loyal friends and faithful pet. A perfect storm of deforestation, governmental changes, flooding and drought creates a sudden famine. The text does not spare readers the effects of starvation and grinding poverty on humans and animals. However, there are also many descriptions of how and why power-generating inventions work, and the passages about creating tools from almost nothing are reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilder?s Little House series. Against astounding odds, Kamkwamba?s eventual creation of a windmill to bring lighting to his family?s home is nothing short of amazing. Compelling and informative for a broad readership and a good addition to STEM collections. (map, prologue, photographs, epilogue, acknowledgments) (Memoir. 11-16)

Independent Reading Level: 5 - 9 grades

Awards: Alex Award from the American Library Association in 2010

This is an excellent children's book (possibly for 8 years and up). Told by William himself, it is a story about social injustice, science, public health, and creativity. William is a genius, he is brave, he asks questions, finds his own answers, and doesn't give up. The world needs more people like William!

Independent Reading Level: 1st to 3rd.

Awards: Children's Africana Book Awards, 1992-2023. Outstanding Science Trade Books, 2005-2024. Junior Library Guild Selections, 2012-2023

3.5

This is an inspiring story about a boy who defies the odds and brings electricity to his village. This story can teach children how to shoot for the stars and reach their goals no matter how impossible they may seem.

William Kamkwamba grew up in a village in Malawi without electricity or running water. His family lived comfortably until the famine of 2002. Like many in the country, his family subsisted on a few mouthfuls of food a day. With food prices soaring, William's father could no longer afford to send him to school, and for the next five years, William relied on a tiny village library and his friend's class notes to try and keep up. Most of the books in the library were donations from the US, and amongst them he found a few physics books. Fascinated with the diagrams, William began scrounging materials to do experiments. His dream was to build a windmill so that his family could have light at night and a pump to irrigate their fields and never go hungry again. He succeeds beyond his wildest dreams.

The book starts slow with lots of world building and stories that he heard as a child about witches and magic. The plot picks up with the famine and William's experiments. It's amazing and inspiring to read about his efforts to self-educate and to help his family. The co-author of this memoir lived with William's family for several months and interviewed his friends and family to verify details. The photos and William's crude drawings of his machines are a nice touch. I'm glad my copy of the book included an essay by William at the end which covered the time since the book was first published and the work of his foundation, Moving Windmills.½

Description: Based on a true story, this book follows William Kamkwamba's determination to bring electricity to his Malawian village through wind power.
Age Group: 8-12 years

This chapter book follows William Kamkwamba, a boy in Malawi, who decides to create a windmill to help his family farm and produce food through the drought plaguing his village. To do so, William uses his knowledge of science and engineering to construct the windmill that will allow his family to pump water to, and provide electricity for, their farm.
Science content and Malawian culture are exhibited throughout this book. Science and writing activities could be created from the book. Students create their own windmill or reflect on their thoughts on the book.
This book can also be used to inspire kids to make a positive change in their community and show them that it only takes one person to make a difference in someone's life.

Independent Reading Level: Grades 4-5
Awards: won the Alex Award from the American Library Association in 2010

I almost gave this book 5 stars. I admit it started off a bit slowly. This was a fascinating look at the life of a young man in an African village in Malawi. I loved reading about how he taught himself the principles needed to build his own windmill and create electricity for his household. He showed remarkable ingenuity and tenacity in gathering the materials necessary and making it work. This is an inspiring story that appealed to my "science side" and my emotional side!

A captivating story about the main character William. He is from the Masitala Village outside of Kasungu, Malawi. His family lives on a farm where people make their living growing maize, and tobacco. William is a bright, and adventurous boy that is determined to build a windmill for his family to make energy to power lights and a water pump to irrigate the family farm. It's a wonderful story that deals with a persons willingness to overcome any odds to get what they desire.

I had wanted to read this book for the longest time. William's story is amazing, and given the obstacles he overcame to not only build his windmill, but to survive, his story is nothing short of miraculous. A very inspiring story of perseverance, tenacity, overcoming adversity, and the power of learning.½

An interesting story, but took a little while to get into.

The story follows young William after a severe drought destroyed his family's crops in Malawi. Readers get to follow along as William takes his family's future into his own hands and teaches himself how to make a windmill. With the windmill his family is able to get electricity on their farm and are able to pump water to the crops. This exciting story show that no matter your age, you can do great things! All you need is a little imagination and determination!

William, a young boy who lives in a poor Masitala Village, outside of Kasungu, Malawi. In December of 2000, a large flood devastates Malawi. It is followed by a prolonged drought. Widespread famine makes everyone desperate. After finding out he will not be able to attend any of the boarding schools that he wanted to attend and his family will not be able to pay for another school, he drops out of school. William finds a new hobby and eventually builds an . electric windmill that can power lights and a water pump to irrigate the family farm.
This book demonstrates that no matter what situation a person finds themself, with sheer will and determination, they can accomplish anything.

My 10 year old loved this book. He said it was a very easy read and thought his 8 year old brother could easily read it. He found the story fascinating and inspiring. The main character and their community go through many hardships. It was eye opening to my son, reading about a life so different from his own, yet it was also much the same. Inspiring because a kid was able to take spare bike parts and make a windmill. It was a very “kids can do big things” message for my son. He loved retelling the story over dinner. At the end, my son declared this to be his new favorite book.

Goodreads Review:
William Kamkwamba was born in Malawi, a country where magic ruled and modern science was mystery. It was also a land withered by drought and hunger, and a place where hope and opportunity were hard to find. But William had read about windmills in a book called Using Energy, and he dreamed of building one that would bring electricity and water to his village and change his life and the lives of those around him. His neighbors may have mocked him and called him misala—crazy—but William was determined to show them what a little grit and ingenuity could do.

Enchanted by the workings of electricity as a boy, William had a goal to study science in Malawi's top boarding schools. But in 2002, his country was stricken with a famine that left his family's farm devastated and his parents destitute. Unable to pay the eighty-dollar-a-year tuition for his education, William was forced to drop out and help his family forage for food as thousands across the country starved and died.

Yet William refused to let go of his dreams. With nothing more than a fistful of cornmeal in his stomach, a small pile of once-forgotten science textbooks, and an armory of curiosity and determination, he embarked on a daring plan to bring his family a set of luxuries that only two percent of Malawians could afford and what the West considers a necessity—electricity and running water. Using scrap metal, tractor parts, and bicycle halves, William forged a crude yet operable windmill, an unlikely contraption and small miracle that eventually powered four lights, complete with homemade switches and a circuit breaker made from nails and wire. A second machine turned a water pump that could battle the drought and famine that loomed with every season.

Soon, news of William's magetsi a mphepo—his "electric wind"—spread beyond the borders of his home, and the boy who was once called crazy became an inspiration to those around the world.

Here is the remarkable story about human inventiveness and its power to overcome crippling adversity. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind will inspire anyone who doubts the power of one individual's ability to change his community and better the lives of those around him.

Subtitle: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope

This is the memoir of an extraordinary young man, the son of a Malawian farmer, struggling in poverty and through famine and drought, but following the spark of inspiration, his own thirst for knowledge, and a desire to help his family and community. William saw a need and thought, “What if?” As he explained to a TED conference, “I tried, and I made it.”

What he did was electrify his family home with his makeshift windmill, constructed from miscellaneous parts he scavenged from a scrapyard. Unable to attend school because his parents lacked the funds to pay tuition, William relied on the library, and one specific book on physics which he read over and over and over again. He did not despair that he lacked this or that device or material, rather he saw possibilities in the least likely bits and pieces. And he remained focused on his goal of improving his family’s life and ability to succeed.

Brian Mealer co-authored the memoir, as Kamkwamba’s English was pretty basic at the time he sat down to tell his story. Still, it’s not the best-written book I’ve read, but the emotion of the story is what elevates it, in my opinion.

His story is inspiring and uplifting. Bravo!

(Note: There is also a young adult edition of his memoir, which, I assume, has less of the technical science / engineering in it. In his life, Kamkwamba has since gone one to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College. He continues to work to improve the lives of his countrymen.)

A kid in Malawi, frustrated with famine and ignorance in his village, and unable to afford the fees to go to school, visits the library instead. He learns to build a windmill that powers electricity to his house for the first time using finds from the scrapyard, hard work, & ingenuity. He overcame a country’s superstition to become a highly successful African entrepreneur aiming to improve his world. I love this book! This kid is my hero!

A great inspiring story about a boy in Malawi who build a wind turbine and tower out of salvaged parts. William Kamkwamba couldn't afford to pay his school fees after the crops failed and he had to leave school. That did not stop him from continuing to learn on his own. He has since been invited to give a TED talk and been able to return to school.