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A review by stephenmatlock
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope by William Kamkwamba
5.0
Oh my.
I was prepared to like the book because I had heard some bits and pieces of what this boy did.
But then you find out what he really did, and where he did it, and how he did it. And it is overwhelming how smart and creative and giving he is.
This boy (a man now) is a reminder of how good and creative humans can be, how much we can give to each other.
Starting from just an innate curiosity and prompted by need, young William, a drop-out from middle school due to a near-catastrophic country-wide drought and famine, ends up reading one book after another on physics. He and his family struggle to survive on less and less food, and people are desperate for help--so he tries to figure out a way to help his family and his village acquire power and light and security. By watching others, by reading books, by doing a lot of thinking and experimentation on various fragments of technology along with his best friends, William gradually figures out the principles of generating electricity from a windmill, and then scrounges the countryside for various pieces to stick together into a Rube Goldberg-like windmill, constructed of poles and bamboo and rope and a broken bicycle, PVC pipes melted and flattened into blades, and other scraps from a junkyard. Finally the windmill is constructed, and begins turning--and electricity flows into his home and into his life and the lives of his family, giving them the beginnings of a life based on technology.
The thing that got me wasn't so much that he is simply brilliant and creative, but that he is good and giving as well. There is a spirit within him of giving to his community, raising everyone up with hope and accomplishment. This man is transformative to the people he touches.
I do not know the next chapters in his life, but this book is only the beginning for this wonderful journey.
I was prepared to like the book because I had heard some bits and pieces of what this boy did.
But then you find out what he really did, and where he did it, and how he did it. And it is overwhelming how smart and creative and giving he is.
This boy (a man now) is a reminder of how good and creative humans can be, how much we can give to each other.
Starting from just an innate curiosity and prompted by need, young William, a drop-out from middle school due to a near-catastrophic country-wide drought and famine, ends up reading one book after another on physics. He and his family struggle to survive on less and less food, and people are desperate for help--so he tries to figure out a way to help his family and his village acquire power and light and security. By watching others, by reading books, by doing a lot of thinking and experimentation on various fragments of technology along with his best friends, William gradually figures out the principles of generating electricity from a windmill, and then scrounges the countryside for various pieces to stick together into a Rube Goldberg-like windmill, constructed of poles and bamboo and rope and a broken bicycle, PVC pipes melted and flattened into blades, and other scraps from a junkyard. Finally the windmill is constructed, and begins turning--and electricity flows into his home and into his life and the lives of his family, giving them the beginnings of a life based on technology.
The thing that got me wasn't so much that he is simply brilliant and creative, but that he is good and giving as well. There is a spirit within him of giving to his community, raising everyone up with hope and accomplishment. This man is transformative to the people he touches.
I do not know the next chapters in his life, but this book is only the beginning for this wonderful journey.