false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1243828162m/6419887.jpg 6419887 5 William Kamkwamba was born in Malawi, Africa, a country plagued by AIDS and poverty. Like most people in his village, his family subsisted on the meager crops they could grow, living without the luxuries—consider necessities in the West—of electricity or running water. Already living on the edge, the situation became dire when, in 2002, Malawi experienced the worst famine in 50 years. Struggling to survive, 14-year-old William was forced to drop out of school because his family could not afford the $80-a-year tuition. Though he was not in a classroom, William continued to think, learn—and dream. Armed with curiosity, determination, and a library book he discovered in a nearby library, he embarked on a daring plan—to build a windmill that could bring his family the electricity only two percent of Malawians could afford. Using scrap metal, tractor parts, and blue-gum trees, William forged a crude yet working windmill, an unlikely hand-built contraption that would successfully power four light bulbs and two radios in his family’s compound. Soon, news of his invention spread, attracting interest and offers of help from around the world. Not only did William return to school but he and was offered the opportunity to visit wind farms in the United States, much like the ones he hopes to build across Africa. A moving tale of one boy’s struggle to create a better life, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is William’s amazing story—a journey that offers hope for the lives of other Africans—and the whole world, irrefutably demonstrating that one individual can make a difference. 6609046 book 1 10 2009 The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope total:115|5:55|4:43|3:15|2:2|1:0| 115 496 1601 70 5 0 false false Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 18 19:14:27 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 19:43:44 -0800 2009
Though the first half of the book appears to be an expose on the devastating problem of famine in Malawi, I realize this part of Willi...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Oct 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 31 19:31:58 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 01 06:38:20 -0800 2009
Here is the first person story of a boy who had to learn how to build his electricity generating windmill by re-inventing each principle along the way toward its construction. Of course, he couldn't h...more...]]> 4 1 false true Mon Oct 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 13:13:27 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 13:14:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 true false Sun Oct 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 24 03:57:59 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 24 23:21:51 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Oct 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 16:50:26 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 16:51:29 -0700 2009 1 The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind really is not just about the William Kamkwamba's windmill. The windmill doesn't even come to fruition until about two hundred pages in. The majority of the book is about William's life as a chil...more...]]> 5 3 false false Wed Sep 16 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 19:22:19 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 19:22:55 -0700 2009
William Kamkwamba , was raised in Malawi - Africa. Malawi was a place where most people believed in magic and cu...more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Aug 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 19:45:33 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 19:45:33 -0700 2009
William tells the story of his childhood in the small agricultural village in Malawi. From the the general bias towards magic and ...more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 01 11:45:17 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 01 11:57:06 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Aug 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 20:16:39 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 06 21:15:59 -0700 2009
William Kamkwamba lived in an Africa of contradictions, where witchcraft bumped against faith in God and Allah-- where famine followed drought and officials denied ...more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 12 22:30:29 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 22:52:15 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Oct 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 06 11:26:53 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 18:12:48 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Nov 12 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 06 16:12:10 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 13 10:24:15 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Nov 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 16:09:44 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 16:18:57 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Oct 19 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 11 17:42:14 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 19 12:23:44 -0700 2009 William Kamkwamba's story doesn't start out a unique one. There's poverty, good humor, cultural descriptions, and a dictator I have never heard of. Malawi could be any country in Africa, and he could be any boy telling the story of his family....more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 18 19:58:11 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 20 10:30:55 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Oct 23 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 20 10:41:14 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 23 12:41:43 -0700 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Nov 04 16:39:42 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 16:39:42 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Sep 29 13:58:28 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 11:17:38 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Sep 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 30 17:30:05 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 30 17:50:06 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Aug 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 11 12:22:12 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 11 17:02:27 -0700 2009 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=6419887