The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

boywhoharnessedthewindYoung Readers Edition

Written by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer

When William Kamkwamba was a young teenage boy living in Africa, a famine covered his village in Malawi and all the surrounding areas. His family’s crops were destroyed and money was scarce, if any at all. There was little or no food and his family, along with many others, were slowly starving. Because of the desperate situation, William had to drop out of school. His only means of education was the small village library. And it was here, in the science section, that this brilliant, creative, resourceful young man was inspired. Part reading part following illustrations, he learned how he could change things for his family, his village and all the others—- he would build a windmill. I was so inspired by this book. I was amazed at William’s resourcefulness and brilliant mind. Here was a young man living in a desperate situation with none of the resources we live with. He scoured the village for anything he could recycle into the parts he needed to build the windmill. He went on years later to graduate from Dartmouth College. Included are color photographs of his village, some of his family, the windmill, his school, and from these you can see how different his life was from ours. I loved this amazing, heartwarming story. I would recommend it for 5th grade and up as a read alone or as a class.

Review by Renee Larsen, Hillside Elementary Media Center
Rating: ★★★★★ (5 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 5-8

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (Young Readers Edition)
Written by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer
Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Group
293 pages
Release Date: February 5, 2015

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