Before I get into the review, I just want to quickly mention that there won’t be a November Reads post this month — for the simple reason that I didn’t read any books in November. I suppose I could defend myself with the knowledge that I did write a book (any other NaNoWriMo buds out there?), albeit a terrible one. Third drafts, man.
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. But William had read about windmills, and he dreamed of building one that would bring to his small village a set of luxuries that only two percent of Malawians could enjoy: electricity and running water. His neighbors called him misala—crazy—but William refused to let go of his dreams. With a small pile of once-forgotten science textbooks; some scrap metal, tractor parts, and bicycle halves; and an armory of curiosity and determination, he embarked on a daring plan to forge an unlikely contraption and small miracle that would change the lives around him.
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is a remarkable true story about human inventiveness and its power to overcome crippling adversity. It will inspire anyone who doubts the power of one individual’s ability to change his community and better the lives of those around him.
I found out about this book by googling ‘books from Malawi’ and I was immediately intrigued. The selection of literature from the country isn’t exactly bountiful — and while there were a small grouping of novels I could have chosen from, I was drawn more to this memoir. My library had a copy, which isn’t surprising, since this book was at one point on the NYT Bestseller list, and in less than two weeks the book was in my hands.
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind has a distinct American flavour to it, which is perhaps counterproductive to my entire project, but it held a lot of Malawian culture and atmosphere nonetheless. I’m quite sure the book was almost entirely written by Bryan Mealer, the secondary credited author, but from quickly looking up William Kamkwamba and watching a bit of his TED talk, it’s clear that the story comes from his heart. It’s an inspiring look at a young man’s inventiveness and desire to learn — someone who has the creativity to keep trying to build.
Despite the inspiring narrative that it tells, the book itself wasn’t fantastic. It dragged on at times, seemingly confused as to whether it was a young adult memoir or a school textbook. Both types of writings were interesting, but they weren’t combined with any sort of grace. Heartwrenching paragraphs about a devastating famine were surrounded on either side by intense descriptions of physics principles, which immediately drew any kind of urgency out of the story. It was difficult to keep reading at times, because the narrative would get so overburdened that the words swam on the page. I loved the story, and I think William is an inspiration to any young inventor, but the book was paradoxically both oversimplified and overcomplicated. It could never find itself a nice middle ground, and that’s where it lost me.
- from Malawi.
- read November – December 2017, book #20.
- published 2009, 270 pages.
- I checked out my copy from my local library.
Have you read this book? What did you think? Do you have any other memoir reccomendations for me?
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